PRIME MINISTER

Commonwealth Games

Tony Lloyd: To ask the Prime Minister what preparations are being undertaken for the commencement of the jubilee baton relay in celebration of the Manchester 2002 Commonwealth Games.

Tony Blair: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave him earlier in the House.

Policy Units

Richard Bacon: To ask the Prime Minister if he will make a statement on the performance of the performance and innovation unit.

Vincent Cable: To ask the Prime Minister if he will make a statement on the roles of the (a) forward strategy unit, (b) performance and innovation unit and (c) policy unit.

Tony Blair: I refer the hon. Members to the answer I gave my hon. Friend the Members for Great Grimsby (Mr. Mitchell) on 14 January 2002, Official Report, columns 86–87W.

Camp David Talks

Tam Dalyell: To ask the Prime Minister if he will make a statement on his talks with President Bush at Camp David on 23 February 2001.

Tony Blair: My visit to Camp David on 23 and 24 February 2001 was the first opportunity for face-to-face talks with the newly-elected President Bush. The joint statement we agreed and issued on 23 February 2001 covered our key concerns: NATO, a European security and defence policy, proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, Iraq, the Lockerbie tragedy, Northern Ireland, developments in Africa and trade issues. The terrible events of 11 September have underlined the importance of the United Kingdom's close working relationship with the United States in pursuit of our common aims.

Coal Bed Methane

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Prime Minister whether the performance and innovation unit's energy review considers the exploitation of coal bed methane vital to the UK's energy needs; and when the review will be published.

Tony Blair: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Ceredigion (Mr. Thomas) on 9 January 2002, Official Report, column 816W.

Child Care Review

Caroline Flint: To ask the Prime Minister if he will make a statement on the performance and innovation unit's role in relation to the cross-cutting review of child care.

Tony Blair: My right hon. Friend the Chief Secretary to the Treasury announced on 25 October that an inter-departmental review of child care would be undertaken with conclusions feeding into the 2002 spending review. The performance and innovation unit are project managers for the review. It is being led by my noble Friend Baroness Ashton, and involves the Department for Education and Skills, the Department for Work and Pensions, HM Treasury, the Department of Trade and Industry and the women and equality unit.

Energy Review

Bob Spink: To ask the Prime Minister if he will make a statement on the recent work of the PIU on the energy review.

Tony Blair: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Ceredigion (Mr. Thomas) on 9 January 2002, Official Report, column 816W.

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

Civil Service Appointments

Helen Jackson: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State what role his Department has in establishing the criteria for making senior appointments to the civil service.

Christopher Leslie: Individual Departments are responsible for deciding the criteria used for selection to fill their own senior management posts. The Cabinet Office has a role in ensuring that senior appointments policy as a whole meets the objectives of the civil service reform programme. This includes monitoring progress against targets to increase diversity and to bring in new skills and experience from outside the service.

Youth Homelessness

Chris Bryant: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State what recent work the social exclusion unit has carried out on youth homelessness.

Barbara Roche: The SEU has produced a number of reports, such as "Teenage Pregnancy", "Bridging the Gap", and "Truancy and Exclusion", which have focused on children at risk of social exclusion and the underlying issues which can lead to youth homelessness.
	The SEU is currently leading a project on young people who run away from home or care, many of whom are at risk of rough sleeping and homelessness in later life.
	A number of youth homelessness projects have been supported by the rough sleepers' unit since the 1998 SEU "Rough Sleeping" report.

Regional Economy (East Midlands)

Andy Reed: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State what assessment he has made of the way in which the Government office for the east midlands contributes to the regional economy.

Barbara Roche: The performance of the Government office for the east midlands is regularly assessed against the targets set out in its annual business plan. For example, grants offered to businesses by the Government office have generated further investment of nearly £6.5 million and with the support of the office £119 million has been allocated to the region to support local transport plans. A further £90 million is allocated through the Government office to support the regional development agency.

Social Exclusion

Huw Edwards: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State if he will make a statement on combating social exclusion.

Charlotte Atkins: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State if he will make a statement on the reduction in social exclusion since 1997.

John Prescott: The social exclusion unit is currently working on four new projects, looking at:
	re-offending by ex-prisoners;
	young runaways;
	educational attainment of children in care; and
	transport and social exclusion.

Public Appointments (Women)

Linda Gilroy: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State what recent discussions his Department has had about increasing the number of women seeking public appointments.

Christopher Leslie: The Government as a whole are determined significantly to increase the number of women who hold public appointments.
	My Department produced best practice guidance on making public appointments which will be continuously updated.
	My hon. Friend the Member for Hornsey and Wood Green (Mrs. Roche) is also hosting a series of seminars around the country to encourage more women to apply for public appointments.

Modernising Government White Paper

Brian White: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State what progress has been made in attaining the targets set out in the Modernising Government White Paper.

John Prescott: The Modernising Government White Paper set out the following commitments:
	Better policy making—The Centre for Management and Policy Studies in the Cabinet Office encourages effective policy making which produces results via training and development; networking and good practice and improved resources for research and evaluation
	A recent survey report—"Better Policy Making"—provides over 40 worked examples of good practice in policy making. It also shows that policy-makers have assimilated and are taking action to modernise the policy process. More information is available at www.cmps.gov.uk.
	Responsive, consumer focused public services—The Office of Public Service Reform is working with Departments to raise awareness of the principles of public sector reform and to increase feedback from customers to support policy making, service delivery and monitoring of performance, to ensure that services are designed around customers and are responsive to them.
	Improving public services—The Prime Minister's Delivery Unit has been established to ensure that the Government achieve their delivery priorities during this Parliament across the key areas of public service: health, education, crime, asylum and transport.
	E-government—The office of the e-Envoy published e-government: a strategic framework for public services in the information age, in April 2000, which set out the Government's strategy for Departments progressing towards the target of having 100 per cent. electronic service delivery by 2005.
	The proportion of Government services available online has risen from 33 per cent. in spring 2000 to 51 per cent. in summer 2001, and is expected to reach 74 per cent. by the end of 2002. The UK online citizens' portal and the Government Gateway are providing the core infrastructure for the further development of e-government services. See website http://www.e-envoy-gov.uk/ukonline/strategy.htm
	Valuing public service—We are creating a civil service for the 21st century. My Department continues to drive the Civil Service Reform programme, and good progress has been made. A report on progress was published in December 2000, and a further report in January 2002.
	These reports, and information on progress across the many separate strands of the Civil Service Reform programme, are published on our dedicated website: www.civil-service.gov.uk/reform.

Regional Government

Andrew George: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State when he expects the Government to publish new proposals for directly elected regional government in England.

John Prescott: I refer the hon. Member to the answer that I gave my hon. Friend the Member for Preston (Mr. Hendrick) on 2 July 2001, Official Report, column 80W.

Regional Government

Lawrie Quinn: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State if he will make a statement on establishing an elected regional assembly for Yorkshire and the Humber.

John Prescott: The Government's plans for taking forward the manifesto commitment on elected regional government will be set out in the forthcoming White Paper on Regional Governance.

Ministerial Code of Conduct

James Gray: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State if he will make a statement on the operation of the ministerial code of conduct.

John Prescott: The Government's response to the Third Report of the Public Administration Select Committee on the ministerial code sets out their views on the operation of the code.

Personal Care (Scotland)

Annabelle Ewing: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State what co-ordination he has undertaken of Departments' assessment of the implications of the free personal care for the elderly in Scotland.

John Prescott: In July 2000, DH Ministers announced that they intended to make care from a registered nurse free when provided in a nursing home. This was implemented in October 2001. At the same time, it was announced that personal care services—such as help with dressing and bathing—would continue to be provided on a means- tested basis.
	The Scottish Executive similarly decided to make nursing care free in nursing homes. In January 2001 they also announced that, unlike in England, personal care would be made free too. These policies have not yet been implemented.
	Both the Government and the Scottish Executive are committed to improving health and social care services for older people, but a different approach has been taken.

IT Management

Mark Todd: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State what recent progress has been made in improving the quality of information technology management in government.

Christopher Leslie: Successful implementation of IT enabled projects is important for the Government's delivery of improved public services and we are strengthening their management in a number of ways. During the last year all major procurement projects in central civil government have been required to undergo Gateway reviews at key decision points by teams of experts independent of the project team; projects can proceed to the next stage only when these rigorous tests have been met. We launched the Successful Projects in an IT Environment (SPRITE) Programme in January 2001 to work with Departments, agencies and non-departmental public bodies to ensure that the recommendations to improve project delivery in the Successful IT: Modernising Government in Action report become embedded in their working cultures.

Climate Change

Paul Burstow: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State what part his Department has in co-ordinating the Government's policy on climate change.

John Prescott: The Cabinet Office provides support to me in my continuing role on international climate change discussions and negotiations on behalf of my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister. It assists me in my work to foster effective relationships internationally at the highest political level. The UK's negotiating positions for international negotiations on climate change are agreed through the Cabinet Committee on the Environment, which I chair, and which is serviced by the Cabinet Office.
	The lead Department for climate change is DEFRA, which retains policy responsibility, leads the negotiations in both international and EU fora and deals with day-to-day progress and implementation of the UK's policies. The Cabinet Office works closely with them and with other Departments with a key interest in strategic and cross-departmental issues.

Private Medical Insurance

David Laws: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State how many employees in (a) his Department and (b) his Department's agencies and non-departmental public bodies have had private medical insurance provided for them in each year since 1997–98; what the total cost is; and if he will make a statement.

Christopher Leslie: The Civil Service Management Code (CSMC) prohibits Departments and agencies from providing staff with private medical insurance. The Cabinet Office and its agencies comply with this long- standing policy.
	Although non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs) are not bound by the conditions of the CSMC, I can confirm that none of those sponsored by Cabinet Office have paid for private medical insurance on any occasion.

Civil Servants

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State what proportion of retired senior civil servants have undertaken paid work within the private sector in each of the last five years.

Christopher Leslie: Figures are not held centrally, but I can answer on behalf of my own Department. Civil servants who wish to take up outside appointments within two years of their retirement are required to seek permission in the circumstances set out in the Business appointment rules. These rules are included in full in the civil Service Management Code.
	Within the Cabinet Office in the last five years 18 people have retired from the Senior Civil Service. Of these, four, who retired in the years shown in the table, have submitted applications under the rules to take up paid work in the private sector.
	
		
			   Retirements Made application to work in the private sector 
		
		
			 1997 7 — 
			 1998 3 1 
			 1999 4 2 
			 2000 3 1 
			 2001 1 —

Civil Servants

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State what proportion of civil servants have spent the whole of their career within a single Department.

Christopher Leslie: The information, by length of service, is given in the table.
	
		Staff in post by known length of service—April 2001 -- Headcount
		
			 Length of service (years) Staff who remain in the same Department Total staff in post Proportion who remain in the same Department (percentage) 
		
		
			 Less than one 33,860 36,900 91.7 
			 1–5 96,700 121,530 79.6 
			 6–10 62,800 78,860 79.6 
			 11–15 63,660 90,530 70.3 
			 16–20 32,640 51,040 64.0 
			 21–25 31.030 51,460 60.3 
			 26–30 20,960 34,250 61.2 
			 31–35 10.170 16,780 60.6 
			 36–40 3,830 6,700 57.2 
			 41–45 740 1,190 62.2 
			 46+ 20 50 38.3 
			  
			 Total 356,390 489,270 72.8 
		
	
	This information depends for its accuracy on the reliability of data supplied by Departments to the Cabinet Office's Mandate database. Mandate covers around 97 per cent. of civil servants in Departments supplying information electronically.

Departmental Costs

Mark Prisk: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State what the employment costs are, including benefits, of (a) Ministers representing the Cabinet Office and (b) special advisers and their supporting staff retained by the Cabinet Office.

Christopher Leslie: The employment costs, including benefits, of Ministers representing the Cabinet Office is £248,000 per annum and the cost of their special advisers is £196,000 per annum. The estimated cost of Minister's private office supporting staff is £580,000.

Departmental Expenditure

Elfyn Llwyd: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State if he will list his Department's total expenditure by month in each financial year since 1997–98.

Christopher Leslie: I refer the hon. Gentlemen to the answer given on 4 February 2002, Official Report, column 692W.

Empty Properties

John Bercow: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State what his estimate is of the (a) annual cost and (b) total value of the empty properties owned by (i) his Department, (ii) his agencies and (iii) other public bodies for which he has responsibility in each of the last four years.

Christopher Leslie: Information requested, covering 1997–98 to 2000–01 (inclusive), is set out in the table.
	
		£ 
		
			 Year Annual running costs As at 31 March Net book value 
		
		
			 1997–98 484,000 1998 130,270 
			 1998–99 562,000 1999 1,437,943 
			 1999–2000 462,000 2000 173,875 
			 2000–01 451,000 2001 139,400 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. The above figures are for the 'Core' of the Department as none of its agencies nor non-departmental public bodies have owned any empty properties.
	2. Figures are given on a net book value basis, as compiled for annual accounts purposes.
	3. Excluded from the above figures is the project, commenced in 1998–99, to refurbish three vacant buildings. The first of those buildings (Admiralty Arch) was completed and occupied by staff in 2000–01. When the other two buildings (Kirkland House and the Ripley Building) are completed in 2002–03, they will form 22 Whitehall, one of the Department's major buildings.
	With one exception, which is the subject of a forthcoming PFI, all buildings were surplus to the Department's requirements and were in the process of being disposed. This has now been completed.

Private Finance Initiative

John Bercow: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State what the total external spend by his Department was on Private Finance Initiative consultants in each of the last four years; how many full-time equivalent consultants were employed over this period; how many billed consultancy days there were per year; what the implied average cost of each PFI consultant was; how many consultancy firms were used by his Department over this period; and if he will make a statement.

Christopher Leslie: The information on the Cabinet Office's use of Private Finance Initiative consultants from 1 April 2000 is as follows. Information prior to that date can be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
	
		£ 
		
			  2000–01 2001–02(1) 
		
		
			 Total expenditure (2)69,123 (2)55,919 
			 Number of full time equivalent consultants(3) (3)0.38 (4)— 
			 Number of billed consultancy days 82 57.5 
			 Number of consultancy firms used 1 1 
		
	
	(1) To date
	(2) Excludes VAT
	(3) Calculated on the basis of 215 working days in the year.
	(4) Represents the average cost over the two year period
	(5) Not available
	Note:
	The average cost per year for each of the two individual consultants used is £4,800, £57,721 excluding VAT
	(6)

Retirement Age Review

Paul Burstow: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State if he will publish the results of the reviews of the mandatory age of retirement undertaken by each Department.

Christopher Leslie: Each Department has conducted its own review. The overall picture is being collated for Ministers. We have no plans to publish a separate document.

Older People

Paul Burstow: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State, pursuant to his answer of 19 December 2001, Official Report, columns 335–36W, on older people, when he expects the Cabinet Office to have completed collecting the data from Departments; and when he will write to the hon. Member for Sutton and Cheam.

Christopher Leslie: The Cabinet Office has now collected the data from departments and is currently putting together a report for me to send to ministerial colleagues. When I have presented this to ministerial colleagues I will write to the hon. Member.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Ministerial Transport

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what his estimate is of the cost of (a) ministerial cars and drivers and (b) taxis for his Department in each of the last four years.

Denis MacShane: On (a), I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Secretary, Cabinet Office on 30 January 2002, Official Report, column 406W.
	On (b), FCO expenditure on taxis for the last five years was:
	
		
			 Financial year £ 
		
		
			 1998 226,736.15 
			 1999 329,903.63 
			 2000 380,830.36 
			 2001 (7)378,158.43 
		
	
	(7) Costs incurred from 1 April to 31 December 2001

Afghanistan

Kevin McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the United States concerning the observance of the Geneva Convention and its protocols relating to the treatment of prisoners captured in the course of conflict in Afghanistan.

Ben Bradshaw: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary discussed the treatment of those detained by the US in Afghanistan with US Secretary of State Colin Powell on the telephone on 12 January and in Washington on 31 January.

Afghanistan

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Afghan Interim Government regarding provision of security across Afghanistan.

Ben Bradshaw: Security is a key issue for the Afghan Interim Authority (IA) and for the International Community. It is clear that a stable environment is needed for the IA to be able to function effectively and for reconstruction work to begin. We have been working closely with the IA on this issue and the UK is currently acting as lead nation of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF). ISAF was mandated by United Nations Security Council Resolution 1386 (2001) to assist the IA in the maintenance of security in Kabul and its surrounding areas, so that the IA as well as UN personnel can operate in a secure environment.
	There has been regular discussion with the IA on the issue of security, including between my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister and the Chairman of the IA during the latter's visit to the United Kingdom on 31 January.

Stolen Equipment

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to his answer of 22 January 2002, Official Report, columns 776–77W, on stolen equipment, what the security classification was of the stolen computers and related hardware; from which Departments they came; whether breaches of security were deemed to have resulted in each case; whether equipment was lost outside the Department buildings; and if he will make a statement.

Denis MacShane: The computers and hardware were stolen from South East Asian Department, South and South East Asia Research Group, Information Department, Human Rights Policy Department, Global Citizenship Unit, IT Support Services, Eastern Department, Finance Branch, Latin America and Caribbean Department, Middle East Department, Management Consultancy Services, IT Strategy Unit, Research Analysts, Personnel Command Training and Conference and Visits Group.
	All the equipment concerned was "unclassified" and went missing from within the FCO buildings. No breaches of security resulted to any of the Departments.

International Criminal Court

Vera Baird: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he is taking on behalf of the UK to ensure that when the International Criminal Court begins to function it will do so with (a) an independent prosecutor, (b) financial independence and (c) without risk of political interference from the UN Security Council.

Denis MacShane: The arrangements for the election of an independent Prosecutor for the International Criminal Court, for the funding of the Court and the Court's relationship with the UN Security Council are set out in the Rome Statute of the ICC. The United Kingdom took a significant part in the drafting of that statute and was among the 139 states subsequently to sign it. The UK ratified the Rome Statute on 4 October 2001.
	The Prosecutor will be elected by secret ballot of the Assembly of States Parties. In addition, Article 53 provides that the Prosecutor is independent with respect to the initiation and conduct of investigations and prosecutions, subject to review, in limited circumstances, by the Pre-Trial Chamber.
	The budget of the Court will be provided through Assessed Contributions levied from states which have ratified the Rome Statute. The precise United Kingdom share will not be determined until the Court comes into existence.

International Criminal Court

Vera Baird: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will ensure that the International Criminal Court, once functional, has retrospective jurisdiction over defendants involved in unlawful international events.

Denis MacShane: Article 11 of the Rome Statute of the ICC deals with the temporal jurisdiction of the Court. The Court will have no jurisdiction in respect of crimes committed before the entry into force of the Statute.

International Criminal Court

Vera Baird: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 
	(1)  what involvement the United Kingdom has in the practical preparations for the staffing of the International Criminal Court; and what steps have been taken to ensure that it is adequately and expertly staffed;
	(2)  what role the UK is taking in the Preparatory Commission for the International Criminal Court.

Denis MacShane: The United Kingdom has been an active participant in the eight (to date) Preparatory Commissions (Prepcoms) for the ICC. The election of Judges and senior Officers of the Court will be a matter for the Assembly of States Parties, which will meet once 60 states have ratified or acceded to the Rome Statute of the Court. 49 states, including the UK, have done so to date. The staffing of the Court has been discussed at the Prepcoms in the context of the Court's budgetary requirements. Work is continuing on this. The appointment of suitably qualified and expert staff will ultimately be the responsibility of the Registrar of the ICC.

International Criminal Court

Vera Baird: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 
	(1)  what steps he is taking to encourage states which have not yet ratified the Statute establishing the International Criminal Court to do so;
	(2)  what assistance he is giving to the UN Secretary General in his aim stated at the Preparatory Conference for the International Criminal Court on 27 September 2001 that the International Criminal Court should be functioning within a year;
	(3)  what additional steps he will take to hasten the transition of the International Criminal Court into a working court.

Denis MacShane: The United Kingdom will continue to urge other states, in our bilateral contacts and in partnership with other EU and associated states (in pursuance of the EU Common Position on the ICC) to ratify the Rome Statute. 49 states have ratified to date, the 60th ratification will cause the Court to come into existence. The United Kingdom will liaise with the Officers of the Court, when they are appointed, to determine what practical assistance we may offer in facilitating the smooth commencement of the Court's activities.

International Criminal Court

Vera Baird: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he is making representations to the USA in respect of its ratification of the Statute of the International Criminal Court.

Denis MacShane: Officials are in regular contact with the US Administration in respect of this issue. We have also joined with EU partners in a written demarche to Secretary of State Powell on 30 October and a verbal demarche on 20 December 2001, both in support of the EU Common Position on the ICC of June 2001.

Departmental Leave Entitlement

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what has been the average annual leave entitlement of staff in his Department in each of the last four years.

Ben Bradshaw: In 1998, leave entitlements for FCO staff in the UK were as follows:
	
		
			 Grade Days 
		
		
			 (a) Up to Higher Executive Officer(8)  
			 On entry 22 
			 After one year 25 
			 After 15 years (HEO equivalent)30  
			 After 18 years (up to EO equivalent)  
			   
			 (b) HEOD equivalent up to Senior Management Structure(9)  
			 On entry 25 
			 After 10 years 30 
			   
			 Senior Management Structure 30 
		
	
	(8) HEO equivalent (except HEO Development (HEOD) equivalent)
	(9) Senior Civil Service equivalent
	Notes:
	1. In January 2000, all staff at (a) became entitled to 25 days leave on entry and 30 days after 12 years. Staff at (b) became entitled to 30 days after 10 years.
	2. In January 2002, all staff at (a) and (b) had their entitlements increased to 25 days on entry and 30 days after 10 years.
	Staff serving overseas are entitled to additional leave. In 1998 it was between four and 14 days (on a seven day week basis) depending on grade and length of service. After several changes, the entitlement is now five or 10 days (on a five day week basis) depending on grade and length of service.

Holocaust

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to his answer of 18 July 2001, Official Report, column 259W, if he will make a statement on progress toward resolution of outstanding restitution issues relating to the Holocaust and other victims of Nazi Germany by EU accession candidate countries.

Peter Hain: The Government continue to encourage the settlement of Holocaust-era claims in the relevant EU candidate countries. There has been some progress—notably in Poland, where the Prime Minister has announced that a new restitution Bill compensating victims of all nationalities will be brought to Parliament probably next year. Budgetary difficulties have hampered claims settlement in several of the countries concerned, though all the candidate countries emphasise the importance they attach to this process, as we do.

Middle East (UN Observers)

Tom Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if it is his policy to support the sending of UN observers to the occupied Palestinian territories.

Ben Bradshaw: The Government believe that third-party monitoring, accepted by both parties, would serve the interests of Israel and the Palestinian Authority in their search for peace. We would support any monitoring accepted by both parties, including UN monitoring. Such monitoring could assist both sides in implementing the Mitchell recommendations.

EU General Affairs Council

Jimmy Hood: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the outcome was of the General Affairs Council held in Brussels on 28 and 29 January; what the Government's stance was on each issue discussed, including its voting record; and if he will make a statement.

Peter Hain: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary and I attended the 28 January General Affairs Council. There were no formal votes taken at this Council, but Conclusions were adopted on a range of subjects, in each case reflecting UK positions.
	The Council held a public debate on the Spanish presidency programme for the first half of 2002. The UK underlined the importance of anti-terrorism co-operation, enlargement, economic reform, effectiveness in external policy, trade liberalisation, the middle east peace process and Zimbabwe.
	On Zimbabwe, the Council concluded that the essential elements defined in Article 9 of the Cotonou Agreement were not being respected. It decided to close the Article 96 consultations with Zimbabwe and to implement targeted sanctions if:
	the Government of Zimbabwe prevent the deployment of an EU observation mission starting by 3 February 2002, or if they later prevent the mission from operating effectively. Likewise, if the Government of Zimbabwe prevent the international media from having free access to cover the election; or
	there is a serious deterioration in the situation on the ground, in terms of a worsening of the human rights' situation or attacks on the opposition; or
	the election is assessed as not being free and fair.
	The Council took note of a presentation by the presidency of its work programme on enlargement. The presidency's programme is aimed at ensuring that negotiations with candidate countries which are ready can be concluded by the end of the second half of 2002.
	The Council discussed Council Secretariat and Commission papers on conflict prevention. The presidency stressed the need to identify priority areas for action. Member states endorsed the themes of the papers and agreed that EU action should continue to be targeted, joined up and timely.
	The Council adopted Conclusions calling for conclusion of the EU/Chile agreement before the EU Summit with Latin American and Caribbean countries in May this year, and agreed Conclusions welcoming progress in the EU/Mercosur negotiations.
	The Council agreed that the two Vice Presidents of the Praesidium to the Convention on the Future of Europe should remain independent of their nation states. The Council agreed a general framework for the convention budget to be extracted from the current Community budget. This will not, therefore, require any additional expenditure by member states.
	The General Affairs Council issued Conclusions on the middle east peace process. Ministers were concerned at the recent violence and condemned recent Palestinian terrorism. Ministers reaffirmed the importance of the Laeken declaration, which set out the steps required by both sides in the short term, called on Israel and the Palestinian Authority to implement the Tenet and Mitchell recommendations immediately and unconditionally and reaffirmed the need for security and political steps to be taken in parallel. Ministers also expressed their concern at the destruction of Palestinian infrastructure and other facilities which help Palestinians in their economic, social and humanitarian development and which are financed by the European Union and other donors. The GAC urged the Government of Israel to put an end to this practice and reserved the right to claim reparations in the appropriate fora.
	The Secretary General/High Representative and the Commissioner for External Relations presented a joint paper consisting of an annual review on Common Strategies. The first of the existing three Common Strategies (on Russia, Ukraine and the Mediterranean) expires in June 2003. The SG/HR and Commissioner Patten agreed to work together on further ideas for improving the effectiveness of Common Strategies.
	The Council discussed the Western Balkans and welcomed signs of steady improvement in relations between Croatia, the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and Bosnia and Herzegovina and encouraged the three countries to continue this rapprochement. The Council urged Belgrade, Zagreb and Sarajevo to work with increased resolve on all matters related to the return of refugees and displaced persons. The Council supported efforts undertaken by SG/HR Solana to facilitate dialogue between Belgrade and Podgorica. It also expressed its concern at the continuing failure of the Assembly in Kosovo to elect a President. The Union's willingness to start negotiations with Albania for a Stabilisation and Association Agreement with Albania was stressed, but the Council noted that attention has recently been diverted from vital reforms. The Council took the decision to conclude the Interim Agreement with Croatia. The adoption of the Local Self-Government Law in Macedonia was welcomed as a critical step in the process of implementation of the Framework Agreement. This opens the way to the holding, on 12 March 2002, of a Donors' meeting.
	The Council discussed the possibility of an unarmed EU-led policing mission to succeed the International Police Task Force (IPTF) in Bosnia when it completes its mandate at the end of 2002. Its aim would be to consolidate the achievements of the IPTF and the international community's work to establish sustainable policing arrangements under Bosnian ownership in accordance with best European and international practice. The Council agreed that more detailed work was required in order to allow it to take a decision at its 18 February meeting on whether the EU should make a formal offer to run the IPTF successor mission.
	Council discussion on EU/Russia focused mainly on Kaliningrad. The presidency said it would accelerate work on Kaliningrad in time for the EU-Russia Summit in May. The importance of dialogue on Kaliningrad between Poland, Lithuania and Russia was also highlighted.
	The presidency debriefed partners on recent EU efforts to defuse tensions between India and Pakistan. The presidency said that the EU should continue its efforts to encourage de-escalation and a return to dialogue.
	The Council discussed the situation in Afghanistan and in particular the satisfactory outcome of the International Donors Conference in Tokyo on 21–22 January 2002. It reiterated the Union's commitment to playing a significant role in the reconstruction of Afghanistan and in supporting the political process agreed in Bonn.

Gibraltar

George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many UK nationals he estimates live full-time in Gibraltar; and how many UK-registered businesses operate in Gibraltar.

Peter Hain: The latest figures published by the Gibraltar Government show that some 3,700 non- Gibraltarian British passport holders were living in Gibraltar in 2000.
	Details on how many UK registered businesses operate in Gibraltar are not available but there is a substantial number of business interests of UK origin.

Gibraltar

George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what present trading arrangements exist between Gibraltar and the United Kingdom.

Peter Hain: The same trading arrangements apply to trade between Gibraltar and the UK as between Gibraltar and the rest of the EU.
	The EC treaty applies to Gibraltar by virtue of Article 299(4). But Gibraltar is exempt from the VAT and Common Agriculture and Fisheries provisions of the Treaty. It is also excluded from the Common Commercial Policy and Community Customs Territory. In consequence, intra-Community rules on Customs and free movement of goods do not apply to Gibraltar, and Gibraltar is a third country under the common regime for imports.
	United Kingdom exports to Gibraltar were £128 million in 2001.
	Gibraltar was the United Kingdom's 73rd export market in 2000.

Mohamed Mustafa Kamel

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the release by the Government of Yemen of a British citizen held on terrorism charges.

Ben Bradshaw: Mohamed Mustafa Kamel, a British national, was released from Mansoura Prison, Aden, on 26 January 2002 following the completion of his three-year sentence.

British Detainees (Mazar-i-Sharif)

Ann Clwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether UK nationals are being held in Shebhargen prison near Mazar-i-Sharif.

Ben Bradshaw: We are not aware of any UK nationals being held in Shebhargen prison near Mazar-i-Sharif.

Burundi

Oona King: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he has taken to encourage a comprehensive military and political agreement with the FDD and other armed movements excluded from Burundi's peace process.

Denis MacShane: The UK has pledged £250,000 in support of the facilitation efforts of President Bongo of Gabon and Vice President Zuma of South Africa. They are working hard to bring together all the disparate elements in the Burundi conflict with the aim of a peaceful negotiated settlement.

Kosovo

Alice Mahon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what progress has been made in identifying the bodies found in Dragodan and Suva Reka in Kosovo.

Denis MacShane: The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) has exhumed 210 bodies from individual graves at the cemetery in Dragodan. According to the Missing Persons Unit of the UN Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), 52 of the 210 bodies have been identified to date.
	ICTY completed its exhumations in Suva Reka in October 2000. The 73 bodies identified to date have been Kosovo Albanians.
	In accordance with last November's UNMIK-FRY Common Document, UNMIK will launch a comprehensive programme of exhumation and identification in Kosovo this year. This will include Suva Reka where 300 unidentified bodies, exhumed by ICTY from graves across Kosovo, were re-interred by UNMIK.

Kosovo

Alice Mahon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what progress has UNMIK made in tracing the missing Serbs in Kosovo.

Denis MacShane: Action to trace missing Serbs from Kosovo is being taken forward by both the UNMIK-FRY Contact Group on Missing Persons and the new High Ranking Working Group, established following signature of the UNMIK-FRY Common Document in November 2001.
	In the Common Document, UNMIK agreed to launch a programme of exhumation and identification in Kosovo this year. As a first step in this process, three joint protocols covering cross-border repatriation of identified remains, joint verification teams and an exchange of forensic information were signed by UNMIK and the Yugoslav authorities in Belgrade on 24 January.
	UNMIK is also in the process of transferring 800 bone samples to the International Commission on Missing Persons' (ICMP) state of the art DNA testing facilities in Sarajevo. The UK is supporting the work of the ICMP with a donation of £250,000.

UN Security Council

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what developments in respect of enhanced counter-terrorism protection measures for (a) civil and (b) military nuclear facilities were transmitted by the Interdepartmental Group on Implementation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1373 (2001) to the UN Security Council, pursuant to SCR 1373 in December 2001.

Denis MacShane: The defence of civil and military nuclear facilities was not mentioned in either UN Security Council Resolution 1373 (2001) or in the guidance for the report.
	A copy of the UK's response to the Counter Terrorism Committee has been placed in the House of Commons Library, and can also be found at www.un.org/docs/ sc/committees/1373.

Nuclear Terrorism

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with his European Union and United States counterparts on the threat of nuclear terrorism.

Denis MacShane: The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs has had regular discussions with his European Union and United States counterparts about terrorist threats, including the threat of nuclear terrorism.

Saudi Arabia

Michael Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what access British diplomats have had to (a) Mr. Sandy Mitchell, (b) Mr. Jimmy Cottle, (c) Mr. James Lee and (d) Mr. Les Walker; what evidence against them has been provided by the Saudi authorities; what legal assistance has been made available to them; what charges have been made against them; what date has been set for their trial; and what representations have been made to the Saudi Government regarding their treatment.

Ben Bradshaw: British embassy consular officials have visited Sandy Mitchell, Jimmy Cottle, James Lee, Les Walker and Peter Brandon as often as allowed. This has been about once a month since we secured consular access to the men. The Saudi authorities have shown us no evidence against the men. Four of the men have been shown on Saudi television saying they carried out bombings. We pressed hard for the men to be allowed to appoint lawyers. This has been allowed and the men have now done so. Their lawyers now have unrestricted access to them. We have not been told what the men may stand trial for. No date for a trial has been set.
	We are extremely concerned about various aspects of this case, including that our access to the prisoners has been restricted. We are in close touch with the detainees' families. The majority of them agree that we should not discuss the cases in detail in public. Throughout we have raised these cases at the highest levels with the Saudi authorities. We continue to do so.

Kashmir

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what action he is taking to encourage a reduction of tension between India and Pakistan about Kashmir; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth affairs is in frequent contact with his Indian and Pakistani counterparts, and other international partners. We are urging Pakistan to continue its crackdown on terrorism. We continue to reiterate to both countries that their differences will best be resolved through dialogue.

Kashmir

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations he has received about human rights violations in Kashmir; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: We remain very concerned over the human rights situation in Kashmir. We condemn all acts of violence that bring suffering to the people of Kashmir.
	We continue to receive regular correspondence from the public and from non-governmental organisations with interests in human rights in Kashmir. We have urged the Government of India to allow greater access to Kashmir, including for international human rights organisations and for UN Rapporteurs. Most recently the Secretary of State discussed human rights in Kashmir on 29 January with Jaswant Singh, the Indian Foreign Minister.
	We continue to impress on the Indian authorities the benefits of greater transparency and importance of investigating abuses.

Visitor Visas

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many visitors visas were granted to citizens of (a) India, (b) Pakistan and (c) Sri Lanka in each of the last three years.

Ben Bradshaw: We do not maintain overseas statistics on nationalities of applicants received at Posts. Indian, Pakistani and Sri Lankan nationals are free to apply at any Post.
	The numbers of visitor category applications granted in India, Sri Lanka and Pakistan are:
	
		
			  India Pakistan Sri Lanka 
		
		
			 1999 152,040 47,968 15,215 
			 2000 154,081 82,099 14,471 
			 2001(10) 177,756 (11)75,746 17,156 
		
	
	(10) The collection of annual statistics on the breakdown of applications by category is currently moving from a calendar year to a financial year basis. So the best available 2001 statistics are for the total number of non-settlement type visas issued in 2001.
	(11) We still await November and December 2001 statistics from Islamabad.

Television Sets

Tim Yeo: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many (a) integrated digital and (b) analogue television sets have been bought by his Department in each of the last 24 months; and if he will publish the guidance given to officials making decisions on television purchases.

Denis MacShane: holding answer 4 February 2002
	Details of the television sets bought by UK Departments of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and overseas posts could be provided only at disproportionate cost since the FCO does not maintain a central record of such purchases.
	Standard FCO guidance applies to the purchase of television equipment. This is based on achieving value for money.

Israel

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the oral statement by the Under-Secretary, my hon. Friend the Member for Exeter (Mr. Bradshaw), of 8 January 2002, Official Report, column 414, on Israel, what assessment he has made of the circumstances surrounding the arrest of Dr. Mustapha Barghouthi by Israeli forces.

Ben Bradshaw: I replied to my hon. Friend by letter on 30 January. Copies of this letter have been placed in the Libraries of the House.

Private Medical Insurance

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many employees in (a) his Department and (b) his Department's agencies and non-departmental public bodies have had private medical insurance provided for them in each year since 1997–98; what the total cost is; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: The FCO does not provide private medical insurance for any of its staff. Staff serving overseas receive medical care in line with NHS standards via a contract with Guy's and St. Thomas's NHS Trust. In some countries where medical standards do not meet those in the UK, and it is not practicable to bring staff home, they are treated by private practitioners.

TREASURY

Refurbishment

John Bercow: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his estimate is of the cost of buildings refurbishment carried out by his Department in each of the last four years.

Ruth Kelly: The information is as follows:
	
		
			  £ 
		
		
			 1997–98 275,569 
			 1998–99 329,255 
			 1999–2000 355,080 
			 2000–01 303,525 
		
	
	The information relates to essential refurbishment and redecoration works in the two Treasury office buildings and in 11 Downing street. It excludes refurbishment works arising from the PFI contract for the Treasury's new office accommodation.

Environmental Appraisals

Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many environmental appraisals have been published by his Department since 1 January 2001; and if he will list the last four.

Paul Boateng: holding answer 21 January 2002
	The Government publish an environmental appraisal and evaluation of Budget measures in each Budget and pre- Budget report. However, no stand-alone environmental appraisals have been published by my Department since 1 January 2001.

Environmental Appraisals

Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he last requested an environmental appraisal before making a policy decision.

Paul Boateng: holding answer 21 January 2002
	Where environmental considerations are relevant, they form an integral part of policy advice to Ministers.

Environmental Appraisals

Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what procedures his Department has to ensure environmental appraisals are undertaken prior to (a) administrative and (b) policy decisions being made.

Paul Boateng: holding answer 21 January 2002
	Environmental considerations are taken into account in taking important administrative and policy decisions.
	The Department's policy checklist includes a section on environmental appraisals.
	Where relevant goods and services are procured, prospective suppliers are asked to include an assessment of the major environmental impacts of the contract, as part of the tendering and evaluation process.
	Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Methods (BREEAM) assessments are undertaken for new buildings and for the major refurbishment of existing buildings within the Department's estate.

Environmental Appraisals

Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many officials from his Department have attended the Environmental Appraisal and Integration into Policy training course run by the civil service college.

Paul Boateng: holding answer 21 January 2002
	No representative from HMT has attended the course referred to to date.

Ministerial Trips

John Bercow: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list each of the overseas trips made by himself and other members of his ministerial team in each of the last four years, specifying the purpose and cost of each trip.

Ruth Kelly: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer given by the Deputy Prime Minister on 4 February 2002, Official Report, column 707W.

Parliamentary Questions

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether special advisers have sight of replies to written parliamentary questions from hon. Members before the replies are sent; and if he will make a statement.

Ruth Kelly: The Code of Conduct for Special Advisers states that the work of special advisers may include "reviewing papers going to the Minister" and that "they may give advice on any aspect of departmental business".

Private Medical Insurance

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  how many (a) civil servants and (b) special advisers working in his department are provided with private medical insurance; how many individuals have been covered by such insurance in each year since 1997–98 and at what total cost to the Exchequer; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  how many employees in (a) his Department and (b) his Department's agencies and non-departmental public bodies have had private medical insurance provided for them in each year since 1997–98; what the total cost is; and if he will make a statement.

Ruth Kelly: Paragraph 7.1.7 of the Civil Service Management Code prohibits Departments from providing staff with private medical insurance. This condition also applies to special advisers.

Tax Receipts

Hugo Swire: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish forecast receipts for (i) 2002–03, (ii) 2003–04 and (iii) 2004–05 from (a) income tax, (b) VAT, (c) corporation tax, (d) capital gains tax, (e) inheritance tax, (f) total taxation in Scotland and (g) North sea oil and gas revenues.

Andrew Smith: Projected receipts for 2002–03, 2003–04 and 2004–05 from income tax, VAT, non-North sea corporation tax and North sea revenues are shown in Table B9 of the November 2001 pre-Budget report, expressed as a percentage of GDP. Receipts for 2002–03 from capital gains tax and inheritance tax are shown in Table B11 of the November 2001 pre-Budget report. No separate projections are made of tax receipts in Scotland.

Euro

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what work has been commissioned by his Department from outside Her Majesty's Treasury on the appropriate long-term exchange rate of the pound against the euro; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  if he will list those university academics and economic research establishments he has asked to carry out work relating to the technical preparations for the five economic tests for euro entry; what this work consists of; what cost to public funds is involved; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Smith: The Treasury is in regular contact with academics and other outsiders on a wide range of issues, including aspects of the preliminary and technical work. However, the assessment of the five economic tests will be a Government assessment and the work will be undertaken by the Treasury.
	The Treasury published a note in November 2001, "Preliminary and Technical Work to Prepare for the Assessment of the Five Tests for UK Membership of the Single Currency", which addressed the issues of content and timing of the preliminary and technical work to prepare for the assessment of the five economic tests for UK membership of the single currency. A copy can be found in the Library of the House.

Arthur Andersen

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer which partners or senior employees of (a) Andersen, (b) Arthur Andersen, (c) Andersen Consulting and (d) Accenture have been appointed to (i) informal roles giving advice to the Treasury, (ii) task forces reporting to the Treasury, (iii) ad hoc advisory groups reporting to the Treasury and (iv) other formal roles reporting to Treasury Ministers since 1997; and if he will make a statement.

Ruth Kelly: Information about task forces and ad hoc advisory groups are set out in annual reports, published by the Cabinet Office. Copies of the annual report on task forces and similar bodies have been placed in the Library of the House and the annual report is available on the Cabinet Office's website.
	Information about informal advisory roles are not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

WALES

Refurbishment

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what his estimate is of the cost of buildings refurbishment carried out by his Department in each of the last four years.

Paul Murphy: Since its creation in July 1999, Wales Office spending on refurbishment/minor works was £217,000 in 1999–2000; and £281,000 in 2000–01. In the current year to date some £21,000 has been spent.

Contracts

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many contracts were let by his Department and agencies for which he is responsible to (a) PWC Consulting or PricewaterhouseCoopers, (b) Ernst and Young, (c) Deloitte and Touche, (d) KPMG and (e) Andersen for consultancy services for the financial years (i) 1997–98, (ii) 1998–99, (iii) 1999–2000, (iv) 2000–01 and (v) 2001 to the latest date for which figures are available, indicating the remuneration in each case.

Paul Murphy: The Wales Office has not let any consultancy contracts to these firms since it came into being on 1 July 1999 and has no NDPBs or agencies. Under the former Welsh Office, £52,000 was paid to PricewaterhouseCoopers in 1997–98 and £4,000 in 1998–99; £20,000 to Deloitte and Touche in 1997–98 and £16,000 in 1998–99; £4,000 to KPMG in 1997–98 and £21,000 in 1998–99.

Secondments

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many staff were seconded between (a) PWC Consulting and PricewaterhouseCoopers, (b) Ernst and Young, (c) Deloitte and Touche, (d) KPMG and (e) Andersen and his Department in (i) 1999–2000, (ii) 2000–01 and (iii) April 2001 to the latest date for which figures are available.

Paul Murphy: There have been no such secondments with the Wales Office since its creation in July 1999. Prior to that date there were in 1999–2000 the following secondments with the former Welsh Office: (a) nil (b) nil (c) one (d) two (e) nil.

Secondments

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many staff were seconded between (a) BP, (b) Shell, (c) Enron, (d) Exxon-Mobil, (e) Conoco, (f) Texaco and (g) TotalFinaElf and his Department in (i) 1999–2000, (ii) 2000–01 and (iii) April 2001 to the latest date for which figures are available.

Paul Murphy: None.

Market Research

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what expenditure has been incurred by his (a) Department, (b) agencies and (c) non-departmental public bodies in each of the last four years on (i) opinion polling, (ii) focus groups and (iii) other forms of market research; and if he will list the surveys commissioned and the purpose of each.

Paul Murphy: I refer to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Hertsmere (Mr. Clappison) on 24 January 2001, Official Report, column 590W.

Departmental Retirement Ages

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list the retirement ages that apply to the employees of his Department and its agencies, including how many and which categories of employees are affected by each; and if he will make a statement on his Department's policy on flexible retirement.

Paul Murphy: I refer to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Altrincham and Sale, West (Mr. Brady) on 25 October 2001, Official Report, Column 351W.

Information Provision

Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will make a statement on the provision of Government information and publicity in Wales.

Paul Murphy: My Department has run no television, newspaper, radio advertising or any other kind of promotional campaign since its creation in July 1999. It has no agencies or departmental public bodies within its responsibilities. We are not responsible for campaigns that may be run by the National Assembly or other Government Departments in Wales.

Private Medical Insurance

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many employees in (a) his Department and (b) his Department's agencies and non-departmental public bodies have had private medical insurance provided for them in each year since 1997–98; what the total cost is; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Murphy: None.

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

Departmental Salary Costs

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what proportion of the departmental expenditure limit in 2001–02 will be accounted for by salary costs and pension contributions.

Patricia Hewitt: The Department of Trade and Industry has a departmental expenditure limit of £4,766 million following the 2001–02 Winter Supplementary Estimate. Of this £795 million is capital budget and £3,971 million is resource budget. Of the £3,971 million resource budget, 4.2 per cent. (excluding ACAS) is planned to be accounted for by salary costs and pension contributions.

Departmental Payments

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will list the instances in which her Department, agencies and non-departmental public bodies failed to pay valid invoices within 30 days or after the agreed credit period in the financial year 2000–01.

Patricia Hewitt: Information on the instances where by Department, agencies and non-departmental public bodies failed to meet the payment target can be collected only at disproportionate cost. However, I can say that the percentage of bills which were paid by my Department and its agencies within 30 days of receipt of a valid invoice was 98 per cent. for the financial year 2000–01. The average percentage of bills paid by my Department's executive non-departmental public bodies over the same period was 89 per cent.

Fossil Fuel Power Projects

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the total carbon emissions are that have been omitted from all Export Credits Guarantee Department supported fossil fuel power generation projects since 1997.

Patricia Hewitt: Since ECGD does not have readily available information on the completion dates and operating schedules of all the power projects that the Department has supported, it is not possible to easily calculate actual total carbon emissions since 1997.
	However, for the power projects for which a guarantee has been issued since 1997 it is estimated that upon completion of these projects total annual carbon emission will be of the order of 13.3 million tonnes. This is based on the following assumptions.
	
		
			 Fuel type ECGD(12) CO2(13) Carbon(13) 
		
		
			 Coal 11,260 40.6 11.1 
			 Oil 492 1.1 0.3 
			 Gas 4,367 7.1 1.9 
			 Total 16,139 48.8 13.3 
		
	
	(12) Estimated capacity (MW)
	(13) Tonnes per year (million)
	It has been assumed the plants operate for 60 per cent. of the time (5,256 hours per year). CO 2 emissions are calculated using the following conversion factors—Coal: 0687 tonnes of CO 2 per MW per hour, Oil 0.417, Gas: 0.309. These are taken from The Greenhouse Gas Protocol website www.ghgprotocol.org and are the 1999 average values for power plants in "Economies in Transition". These are the markets where ECGD most commonly provide guarantees.Carbon emissions are calculated by assuming that carbon makes up 27.3 per cent. of the atomic mass of CO 2 .
	It should be noted that for most large power projects ECGD is only one of several finance providers. Scaling the carbon emissions by the proportion of finance guaranteed by ECGD would give a figure of less than six million tonnes per year of carbon that is directly attributable to ECGDs participation.

Fossil Fuel Power Projects

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much finance has been made available by the ECGD to support UK businesses involved in fossil fuel power projects since 1997.

Patricia Hewitt: The total value of guarantees and insurance provided by ECGD in respect of fossil fuel power projects since 1997 is £1.754 million.

Sual Power Plant (Philippines)

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what level of financial support the ECGD has provided to UK companies involved in the construction and operation of the Sual power plant in the Philippines; what precedent there was for such support at that time; and whether and on what projects this level has been matched in the case of other instances of ECGD support.

Patricia Hewitt: In 1995 ECGD provided financial support to the Sual power project worth £432 million. The guarantee was provided on a limited recourse, project finance basis.
	Prior to Sual, ECGD had supported one limited recourse power project, although with a much smaller loan value. ECGD has also supported a number of power projects on a non-limited recourse finance basis.
	Since 1995, ECGD provided support in excess of £300 million for eight other projects:
	
		
			 Project Country 
		
		
			 Guangdong power project China 
			 Hawk aircraft Indonesia 
			 Air Force equipment and services Saudi Arabia 
			 LNG plant Oman 
			 Boilers for the Shandong power project China 
			 Patrol vessels Brunei Darussalam 
			 Manjung power project Malaysia 
			 Defence equipment South Africa

Power Generating Projects

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what applications have been received by the ECGD relating to power generating projects in the past 12 months.

Patricia Hewitt: In 2001, ECGD received 32 applications related to power generation projects. For reasons of commercial confidentiality ECGD is unable to provide details of individual applications prior to any guarantee being issued. No guarantees or insurance have yet been issued in respect of any of the 32 applications.

Coal Plants (Thailand)

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry from which United Kingdom companies the ECGD has received applications for support of their activities in relation to the proposed coal plants (a) Bo Nok and (b) Ban Krut in Thailand.

Patricia Hewitt: ECGD has not received formal applications in relation to either of these projects. However an initial inquiry has been received in relation to the Bo Nok project. The identity of the UK company involved is commercially confidential and, in line with ECGD's normal policy relating to discussions prior to issue of guarantees, cannot be disclosed.

Fossil Fuel Energy Sector

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will list the UK companies that have benefited from ECGD support in the fossil fuel energy sector and have been prosecuted for contravening environmental protection regulations.

Patricia Hewitt: The projects that ECGD supports are by definition located overseas. Therefore ECGD cannot determine whether, and if so how many, such prosecutions have taken place.
	Details of UK prosecutions for breaches of environmental legislation are published by the Environment Agency.

Fossil Fuel Energy Sector

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will list the five companies in the fossil fuel energy sector that have received the most in ECGD funding since 1997 and the amount received by each.

Patricia Hewitt: ECGD does not provide direct funding, but rather issues guarantees and insurance against loss. Since 1997 the five companies in the fossil fuel energy sector that have received guarantees in respect of the largest amounts of business are:
	
		£ million 
		
			 Company Value 
		
		
			 Alstom Power 902 
			 Mitsui Babcock 347 
			 Kier International 49 
			 Allen Power Engineering 39 
			 Wier Westgarth 36

Post Offices

Colin Breed: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many (a) directly operated post offices, (b) other main post offices and (c) sub-post offices there were in (i) each English region, (ii) Wales, (iii) Northern Ireland and (iv) Scotland in each year since 1979; how many of each category of post office in each case were opened or closed since 1979; and how many have changed their status since 1979.

Douglas Alexander: I am informed by Post Office Ltd. that historic data on numbers of directly operated post offices and sub post offices are only held on a UK basis and historical data on numbers of post office openings and closures and status change are not maintained separately.
	I am also informed by Post Office Ltd. that data by country are not available before 1998. The numbers of post offices operating in Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland, in the last three financial years are as follows:
	Wales
	End March 1998: 1,513
	End March 1999: 1,501
	End March 2000: 1,470
	End March 2001: 1,402
	Northern Ireland
	End March 1998: 650
	End March 1999: 640
	End March 2000: 636
	End March 2001: 611
	Scotland
	End March 1998: 2,051
	End March 1999: 2,026
	End March 2000: 1,999
	End March 2001: 1,936.
	I am informed by Post Office Ltd. that an on-going revision of data has affected individual country totals.

Civil Servants

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many new entrants to the civil service employed in her Department were aged 50 years and over in each of the last five years.

Patricia Hewitt: The information requested for my Department and executive agencies, in each of the last five calendar years, is shown in the table.
	
		
			  Number 
		
		
			 1997 33 
			 1998 61 
			 1999 66 
			 2000 50 
			 2001 81

Staff Appointments

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what procedures have been adopted for the appointment of business executives to a strategy role in her Department; and for which posts applicants are being recruited at present.

Patricia Hewitt: holding answer 1 February 2002
	I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to my hon. Friend the Member for Milton Keynes, South-West (Dr. Starkey) on 1 February 2002, Official Report, column 619W.

Foreign Investment

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the level of foreign investment in the Greater London area has been in each of the last three years.

Patricia Hewitt: The figures in the table are based on information provided by companies at the time of the announcement of the decision to invest in the UK. They are based on the companies' best estimate, at that time, of the number of new jobs to be created.
	There is no requirement to notify inward investment decisions and so the figures include only those projects where Invest UK and its regional partners were involved or which have come to their notice.
	
		
			 London region Number of projects Number of new jobs 
		
		
			 1998–99 105 4,125 
			 1999–2000 159 7,200 
			 2000–01 222 8,306 
			  
			 Total 586 19,631

Your Guide System

Peter Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what discussions she has had with the Scottish Executive on the funding arrangements for implementing the Your Guide system; and if she will make a statement.

Patricia Hewitt: holding answer 5 February 2002
	Officials in my Department have met with officials in the Scottish Executive on a number of occasions to discuss the longer-term future of Your Guide. These discussions have included some initial consideration of funding. If the current pilot of Your Guide demonstrates that the concept meets the needs of citizens and can provide value for money for Government, funding proposals will be worked up in the light of the emerging form and content of a potential national service.

Your Guide System

Peter Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether the Your Guide system will be introduced throughout the United Kingdom at the same time.

Patricia Hewitt: holding answer 5 February 2002
	The pilot of Your Guide currently running in Leicestershire and Rutland is being thoroughly evaluated and this work should be completed in June. If the outcome of the evaluation and of additional work on the costs and benefits of a national Your Guide service indicate that a national service should go ahead, the intention is that this should be introduced throughout the United Kingdom. (Of course national roll-out of an ambitious programme of this kind would be a major undertaking and it is to be expected that the service would be phased in over a period of time.) However, roll-out of a Your Guide service in the devolved regions would be subject to discussion with the devolved Administrations.

Sub-Post Offices

Peter Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many sub-post offices have (a) closed and (b) reduced opening hours which are located in (i) Galloway and Upper Nithsdale, (ii) the Dumfries and Galloway region and (iii) Scotland in each of the last five years.

Patricia Hewitt: holding answer 5 February 2002
	I am informed by Post Office Ltd. that data by country before 1998 are not available and that regional data are not collated in the form requested. Data on reduced hours opening of sub-post offices are not held historically.
	The numbers of post offices operating in Scotland over the last three financial years are as follows:
	
		
			 End March Number 
		
		
			 1998 2,051 
			 1999 2,026 
			 2000 1,999 
			 2001 1,936 
		
	
	I am also informed by Post Office Ltd. that an on-going revision of data has affected individual country totals.

Christmas Day Trading

Gwyneth Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many customers shopped on Christmas day 2001 in England and Wales.

Melanie Johnson: No data are available on the number of customers shopping on Christmas day 2001.

Christmas Day Trading

Gwyneth Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will publish the results of the regulatory impact assessment on the Christmas Day (Trading) Bill.

Melanie Johnson: No regulatory impact assessment has been completed in respect of the Bill.

Christmas Day Trading

Gwyneth Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will publish the representations her Department has received from retailers about the Christmas Day (Trading) Bill.

Melanie Johnson: The Department has so far received no representations from retailers about the Bill.

Christmas Day Trading

Gwyneth Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many retailers have indicated to her Department that they (a) would never open on Christmas day, (b) would consider opening on Christmas day and (c) intend to open on Christmas day, in the last five years.

Melanie Johnson: No retailers had indicated their intentions on these matters to the Department.

Sunday Trading

Gwyneth Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will publish recent representations her Department has received from retailers about Sunday trading hours when Christmas eve falls on a Sunday.

Melanie Johnson: The Department has received no representations from retailers since it became responsible for this subject in June 2001.

Sunday Trading

Gwyneth Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will publish recent representations her Department has received from large garden centres about trading on Easter Sunday.

Melanie Johnson: The Department has received no representations since it became responsible for this subject in June 2001.

Consignia

Annabelle Ewing: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, pursuant to her answer of 17 January 2002, Official Report, column 419, on Consignia, what sums are being invested by the Government with respect to the steps that need to be taken to maintain the delivery service in rural areas and the rural network, broken down by (a) Scotland, (b) England (c) Wales and (d) Northern Ireland.

Douglas Alexander: holding answer 28 January 2002
	The Postal Services Act 2000 provides that it is the primary responsibility of the postal regulator (Postcomm) to exercise its functions in a manner best calculated to ensure the provision of a universal postal service. It is therefore for Postcomm to determine how the universal service obligation is implemented in the interests of consumers. Currently Postcomm requires Consignia plc, in the licence, to provide a universal postal service.
	£480 million has been invested by Government in the Horizon programme to automate the entire post office network and £270 million of support over three years has been committed by Government for modernisation of the network. In addition, we have made available a £2 million fund to support volunteer and community initiatives to maintain or reopen post office facilities in rural areas where traditional services would otherwise close. Advice on transitional financial assistance on a UK-wide basis to the rural post office network from the Postal Services Commission is currently under consideration.

Competition Commission

Mark Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the remit is of the Competition Commission with respect to considering the need for firms to compete globally when investigating merger and acquisition activity in the UK.

Melanie Johnson: When conducting an inquiry into a merger, the Commission is required to determine whether the creation of a merger situation operates, or may be expected to operate, against the public interest. In conducting its inquiry into the public interest effects of the merger the Commission considers all matters which appear to it to be relevant.

Fair Trade Fortnight

Mark Lazarowicz: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps she is taking to encourage participation by her Department in Fair Trade Fortnight from 4 to 17 March.

Patricia Hewitt: The Department's catering contractor is going to run special promotions throughout this period for all its fairly traded goods such as tea and coffee.

Technology Transfer

John Lyons: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what progress is being made to encourage the transfer of new technologies from universities to industry.

Patricia Hewitt: We have introduced a number of complementary initiatives designed to encourage better interaction between universities and industry. This will enable businesses to access and benefit from the universities' research capabilities, and universities themselves become more responsive to the needs of industry.
	In October 2001 the Government made awards in excess of £100 million under three competitions (the Higher Education Innovation Fund £80 million, Science Enterprise Challenge £15 million and University Challenge £15 million) to encourage the transfer of knowledge from the science base to industry.
	This builds on the previous funding allocated to the first round of University Challenge, £45 million in 1999, and Science Enterprise challenge, £28.9 million in 1999–2000.
	We have expanded the successful TCS scheme which enables high-quality graduates to draw on academic support and expertise while working in a company on research projects of value to industry. We have increased TCS activity by 25 per cent. during 2001; from 730 to 918 current TCS Programmes.
	DTI and its co-sponsors have approved 18 Faraday Partnerships focused on areas of major industrial importance to the UK. Each partnership is designed to promote better exploitation of research and technology by creating partnerships between universities, intermediary bodies (eg research and technology organisations, private sector laboratories, etc.), business end-users and suppliers of finance. A further six partnerships will be selected later this year to enable us to fulfil our White Paper commitment to set up a national network of 24 Faraday Partnerships by 2002.
	The Government have continued to support the LINK collaborative research scheme which is aimed at promoting the development and transfer of new technologies between universities and companies. Expenditure across Government in support of LINK was £41 million in 2000–01. The Government announced seven new LINK programmes and committed £12 million in 2000–01 to a further round of Foresight LINK Awards projects, complementing current LINK programmes in Foresight priority areas. There are currently a total of some 380 LINK university/company research projects under way.

Clothing/textile Industries

Andy Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry 
	(1)  if she will make it her policy to promote innovation in the textile and clothing industry by supporting a series of sector-specific events highlighting best practice in product innovation;
	(2)  if she will make it her policy to encourage wool textile manufacturers and trade associations to promote British wool textile as a generic brand;
	(3)  if she will undertake a study of the reasons for the differing performance of the clothing industries in (a) Italy, (b) Germany, (c) France and (d) the UK;
	(4)  what steps her Department is taking to broker the participation of UK textile manufacturers in collaborative EU programmes, with particular reference to (a) LINK and (b) Eureka;
	(5)  if she will undertake to fund activities that will lead to the development of stronger networks among (a) technical textile manufacturers, (b) universities and colleges and (c) other parts of the supply chain in the textile industry;
	(6)  if her Department will arrange a series of regional seminars to highlight the availability of funding for technological innovation in the textile and clothing industry;
	(7)  if she will establish a flexible support fund to support individual companies in the textile and clothing industries undertaking small-scale innovation and developmental work;
	(8)  if her Department will continue to fund technology transfer activities involving technical textile companies and academic institutions;
	(9)  if she will undertake to fund a study of best practice in the Italian textile and clothing industry and how it might be adapted to the UK;
	(10)  if she will make it her policy to ensure the availability of funding to support technological innovation in the textile industry; and if she will make a statement;
	(11)  what steps she is taking to enable traditional textile companies to diversify into technical textiles.

Patricia Hewitt: It is a priority for my Department to support a healthy UK textiles and clothing industry and to work alongside the industry's own Textile and Clothing Strategy Group (TCSG) in helping to improve the industry's productivity and competitiveness. I attach particular importance to helping the industry to innovate and develop new world-beating products. The Government have invested more than £80 million in the industry since 1997. And in the last year alone, we have invested about £8 million focused principally on developing the technical textiles market, employment and training opportunities, help for the supply chain, design skills, the benefits of 3-commerce and export support.
	My Department is working closely with the TCSG to raise awareness and encourage participating of textile and clothing manufacturers in a variety of research, technology transfer and best practice programmes.
	A programme of 10 regionally tailored road shows, "Textile and Clothing Funding Unzipped", is under way in key textiles and clothing regions underpinned by a dedicated website signposting companies to sources of help and support for technological innovation, for R&D and for capital investment, including information on collaborative EU programmes such as Link and Eureka. "Unzipped" road shows have so far been held in Melton Mowbray—east midlands in March 2001, Bolton—north-west region in October 2001, Huddersfield—Yorkshire and Humber region in October 2001, Port Talbot—south Wales in November 2001, Llandudno—north Wales in November 2001, London in December 2001 and continues in Sunderland—north-east region on 6 February 2002, Solihull—west midlands on 5 March 2002, Edinburgh on 14 March 2002 and Belfast on 20 March 2002.
	Particular focus has been given by my Department to supporting the development of Technical Textiles. Since 1998 22 collaborative and innovative technical textiles projects have been supported and a further seven new projects are currently in development. In April 2001 a Technical Textiles Project Co-ordinator was appointed to increase networking within the sector and bring together project consortia of technical textile companies and academic institutions. To help in this objective regional seminars have been held to highlight the availability of funding for technical textile innovation and to encourage traditional textile companies to diversify into this sector. My Department is supporting the work of TechniTex—the Faraday Partnership for technical textiles comprising hub partners Heriot-Watt university, the university of Leeds, UMIST and BTTG. We welcome the industry initiative to explore the possibility of setting up of a TT trade association, which would help broker stronger links across the sector.
	We continue to seek to involve UK textile manufacturers in research collaborations with universities. Currently we are funding two such research partnerships through Foresight LINK Awards. The two projects are aimed at researching new fire resistant textiles, and a prototype automated sorter for the detection and removal of natural and synthetic contaminants in wool and cashmere. We are also funding a EUREKA project with the objective of creating a pilot line for the manufacture of texturised, mass stained, fine polypropylene yarn.
	We are already supporting a variety of collaborative initiatives in the textile and clothing sector as a whole aimed at fostering stronger networks between strategic partners through the Innovation Budget and through best practice programmes such as the Industry Forum Adaptation scheme, which is currently funding a major initiative aimed at improving supply chain efficiency in the textiles and clothing sector.
	My Department is aware that the industry has been in discussions with a view to developing British wool textile as a generic brand. In consultation with the TCSG my Department is carrying out a comparative study of the UK and Italian clothing manufacturing industries, focused on the wool and worsted weaving and men's tailoring sectors. The results of this study will be disseminated to the industry and will inform decisions about any future research projects.

Azerbaijan

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many export credit guarantees were issued to support projects in Azerbaijan in the last year.

Patricia Hewitt: holding answer 5 February 2002
	ECGD has issued no guarantee in the last year in support of projects in Azerbaijan.

Private Sponsorship

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will list the events which have been sponsored by a private organisation in her Department since May 1997 and the names of the sponsoring organisations; and if she will make a statement.

Patricia Hewitt: Information about events where the Department works with outside organisations is not held centrally, and could not be obtained without disproportionate cost. The Department does not have responsibility for the Office of Government Commerce, Inland Revenue or HM Customs and Excise.

Timeshares

Mark Todd: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry 
	(1)  whether she plans to revise the Timeshare (Cancellation Notices) Order 1992 and the Timeshare (Repayment of Credit on Cancellation) Order 1992 on which her Department consulted in 2000;
	(2)  what discussions her Department has had with the European Commission in the last two years on the effectiveness of current controls on the sale of timeshares and holiday club membership;
	(3)  whether she plans to regulate the sale of membership of holiday clubs; and if she will make a statement.

Melanie Johnson: Officials from the Department and the UK Permanent Representation in Brussels have discussed the timing of review of the timeshare directive with Commission officials on a number of occasions.
	The Department launched a consultation on timeshare legislation in April 2000, which invited views on a number of issues including revision of the Timeshare (Cancellation Notices) Order 1992 and the Timeshare (Repayment of Credit on Cancellation) Order 1992 and whether the legislation should be widened to include new products such as holiday clubs.
	The consultation was a means of informing the UK input into discussions on the review and raised a number of complex issues, which the Department is considering.

Secondments

Nigel Waterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many of her Department's officials are seconded to work at (a) Arthur Andersen, (b) Andersen Consulting and (c) Accenture; and how many employees of those firms are seconded to work at her Department.

Patricia Hewitt: None.

Retirement Ages

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will list the retirement ages that apply to the employees of her Department and its agencies, including how many and which categories of employees are affected by each; and if she will make a statement on her Department's policy on flexible retirement.

Patricia Hewitt: The normal retirement age in my Department is 65 for staff in Band A (covering administrative and support staff). For all other staff (covering staff at range 5—formerly Executive Officer level—and above) the retirement age is 60. At 1 April 2001 there were 1,103 staff in Band A and 3,189 staff above this level.
	Flexible retirement is considered on a case-by-case basis under the criteria laid down by the Principal Civil Service Pension Scheme.
	I have asked Agency Chief Executives to reply to the hon. Member.

EU Enlargement

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on EU enlargement and prospects for UK business; and what measures have been brought in to assist businesses in dealing with enlargement.

Melanie Johnson: There is a broad consensus that EU enlargement will benefit the UK economy since it will provide new opportunities for trade and investment. These opportunities will increase as the economies of the EU candidate countries grow and integrate further with those of the existing EU member states.
	The DTI and Trade Partners UK have produced information about EU enlargement, aimed at alerting UK businesses and helping them work out the practical consequences and opportunities for them. The DTI's publication "EU Enlargement and the single Market: Opportunities for Business" published in September 2000 provides information about the enlargement process and the details of the candidate markets.

Television

Tim Yeo: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many (a) integrated digital and (b) analogue television sets have been bought by her Department in each of the last 24 months; and if she will publish the guidance given to officials making decisions on television purchases.

Patricia Hewitt: holding answer 4 February 2002
	Parts (a) and (b) of this question could be answered only at disproportionate cost because the information is not held centrally. However, all equipment purchased by the Department must provide value for money and be fit for purpose. In many cases the Department purchases televisions as monitors for the viewing of educational videos and not for the viewing of television broadcasts.
	Information about digital television sets is available on the digital television website www.digitaltelevision.gov.uk and the guidance it contains is as relevant to public sector purchasers as to consumers. There is, therefore, no specific guidance for officials.

Golden Jubilee

Tim Yeo: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what events (a) she is and (b) other Ministers in her Department are planning to attend as part of the Golden Jubilee celebrations; and what events her Department is planning to arrange to celebrate the Golden Jubilee.

Patricia Hewitt: holding answer 4 February 2002
	I refer the hon. Member to the reply which he has received from my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport.

Radioactive Waste

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what efforts her Department has made to monitor the (a) condition and (b) safety of the radioactive waste dumped approximately 250 miles out of Land's End during the 1960s and 1970s.

Michael Meacher: I have been asked to reply.
	Results obtained under the OECD's Co-ordinated Research and Environmental Surveillance Programme (CRESP) related to sea disposal of radioactive wastes have demonstrated that the radiological impacts on human and oceanic populations emanating from the north-east Atlantic dumpsites are exceedingly small compared to the natural background levels, and are likely to remain so. This view was reiterated in the OSPAR Convention's Quality Status Report 2000, copies of which are available in the Library of the House.
	CRESP reported that the peak critical group individual dose as a result of sea dumping of solid radioactive waste would be 0.00002 millisieverts per annum, compared with 2 millisieverts per annum derived from natural radionuclides. The critical group is the hypothetical group of individuals who are calculated to be most exposed to the source of radioactivity being assessed—in this case coastal consumers of very large quantities of fish, crustaceans and molluscs (approximately 220 kg/year of fish, 37 kg/year of crustaceans and 37 kg/year of molluscs). The peak doses were calculated to occur approximately 200 years after dumping, by which time some of the activity would have leached from the disposal site and dispersed through the ocean.
	The Government fund extensive environmental monitoring of the waters around the UK, and this has not detected any adverse effects which could be attributed to radioactivity from Atlantic disposal sites. The monitoring shows that doses to critical groups from man-made sources of radioactivity are very small, and considerably less than doses due to natural background levels of radioactivity. In view of this, we have no plans to undertake any direct monitoring of the north Atlantic disposal sites.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Unfurnished Cells

Rudi Vis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many times unfurnished cells have been used in each of the prisons in the juvenile estate since April 2000.

Beverley Hughes: Provisional data are given in the table.
	
		
			 Prison Number 
		
		
			 Ashfield 0 
			 Brinsford 0 
			 Castington 240 
			 Feltham 25 
			 Hindley 7 
			 Hollesley Bay 40 
			 Huntercombe 121 
			 Lancaster Farms 0 
			 Onley 32 
			 Portland 31 
			 Stoke Heath 72 
			 Thorn Cross 0 
			 Werrington 0 
			 Wetherby 32

Control and Restraint

Rudi Vis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many children have been injured during control and restraint since April 2000.

Beverley Hughes: Records on injuries received during the application of control and restraint measures are not held centrally. However, inquiries with establishments within the juvenile estate show that during the stated period, 296 trainees have been injured during the use of control and restraint measures. Only five of these incidents resulted in outside hospital treatment and these were for fractures or suspected fractures. Many of the remainder were for tender wrist or reddening around the wrist.

Young Offenders

Rudi Vis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many children were locked out of prisons overnight; at which prisons; and at which police stations they were held since April 2000.

Beverley Hughes: Since April 2000, approximately 1,720 15 to 17-year-olds have been held overnight in police cells following a failure to return them to prisons designated to hold juveniles. The prisons concerned and the numbers associated with each are set out in the table. Information relating to the police stations at which they were held is not available centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. Figures for Ashfield, Brinsford and Portland may be understated as some information is available for the year commencing April 2001 only. Figures for Feltham and Onley may include some young offenders (18 to 21-year-olds).
	
		
			  Designed establishments Lodged in police cells April 2000 to date 
		
		
			 Juveniles only  
			 Hollesley Bay 117 
			 Huntercombe 79 
			 Werrington 54 
			 Wetherby 237 
			   
			  Holding both juveniles and young offenders 
			 Ashfield 27 
			 Brinsford 49 
			 Castington 145 
			 Feltham 192 
			 Hindley 2 
			 Lancaster Farms 110 
			 Portland 38 
			 Onley 283 
			 Stoke Heath 387

Immigration

David Heath: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the level of backlog of immigration applications from (a) work permit holders, (b) people with UK ancestry, (c) EEA nationals and their spouses, (d) fiancés and fiancées, (e) spouses and (f) asylum seekers has been for each of the last five years; and what levels of backlog he predicts for the next two years.

Angela Eagle: I regret that information on predicted backlogs for the next two years and on individual types of general and settlement cases undecided is not available.
	The number of asylum applications awaiting an initial decision on 31 December in each of the last five years is shown in the table. There were 43,000 asylum applications awaiting an initial decision on 30 September 2001, the latest date for which information is available.
	
		Applications for asylum awaiting initial decision, 1996–2000, principal applicants only(14)
		
			  Year Asylum applications outstanding at end of year(15) 
		
		
			 1996 57,405 
			 1997 51,795 
			 1998 64,770 
			 1999 119,700 
			 2000(16) 89,100 
		
	
	(14) Figures rounded to nearest five, except for 1999 and 2000 which are rounded to nearest 100.
	(15) Figures for 1998 and earlier years are not directly comparable with figures for later years.
	(16) Provisional
	Information on the number of asylum cases awaiting an initial decision is published quarterly on the Home Office website at http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/ immigration1.htm. Information on the number of asylum applications awaiting an initial decision at the end of 2001 will be published on 28 February 2002.

Asylum Seekers

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment the Government have made of the appeal facilities that would be available to asylum seekers who would be housed in the proposed accommodation centre at RAF Turnhouse.

Angela Eagle: Accommodation centres will provide asylum seekers with access to legal advice for their appeals. The location of appeal hearing centres is a matter for the Immigration Appellate Authority. However, the Home Office will make provision for asylum seekers to travel to their appeal hearings if they wish to attend.

Asylum Seekers

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what discussions his Department intends to have with representatives of (a) the City of Edinburgh council, (b) the Scottish Executive and (c) others regarding the proposed new asylum seeker accommodation centre at RAF Turnhouse.

Angela Eagle: The Home Office intends to consult widely within the constraints of the planning process, time and departmental resources.

Asylum Seekers

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many asylum seekers who purport to be children have subsequently been found to be adults in the last two years.

Angela Eagle: holding answer 1 February 2002
	Between November 2000 and September 2001, inclusive, there were 1,120 age disputed cases (rounded to the nearest five) of principal applicants who applied in-country. These cases are not included in the published data on unaccompanied minors. Information is not available on either the number of age disputed cases who lodged their application at port, nor on other months in 2000 and 2001.
	Information on unaccompanied minors is published annually in the statistical bulletin "Asylum Statistics United Kingdom", a copy of which is available in the Library, and from the RDS website: http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/ rds/immigration1.html

Asylum Seekers

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to his answer of 15 January 2002, Official Report, column 180W, on asylum seekers, if he will list the categories of data to be stored on the micro-chip on the asylum seeker identification card.

Angela Eagle: The data held in the Application Registration Card micro chip are:
	1. Name
	2. Address
	3. Immigration Fingerprint Bureau (IFB) Ref. No.
	4. Home Office Ref. No.
	5. Port/Local Enforcement Office (LEO) Reference
	6. National Asylum Support Service (NASS) Ref. No.
	7. NASS Status
	8. Originating Port/LEO Code
	9. Date of Birth
	10. DOB disputed?
	11. Sex
	12. Nationality Code
	13. Nationality sub group
	14. Reason printed
	15. Asylum/Non Asylum
	16. Place of original issue
	17. Date of original issue
	18. Next report date
	19. Card Issue No.
	20. Card Serial Number
	21. Photo Image
	22. Fingerprint template
	23. Issuing Officer
	24. Fingerprints taken?
	25. Number of dependants
	26. Dependant of
	27. Language 1
	28. Language 2
	29. Unaccompanied Asylum Seeker Child (UASC)—Responsible authority
	30. Employment status.
	All items will be readable by the Immigration and Nationality Directorate (IND) officials using portable 'QuickCheck' readers. Name, National Asylum Support Service (NASS) Reference Number, Next Report Date and Card Issue Number will also, in due course, be readable by those issuing NASS benefit payments.
	Application Registration Card data will remain subject to review and change.

Computer Hacking

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will publish for each Department contributing to the Unified reporting and Alert Scheme for (a) internal hacking and (b) external hacking incidents the number of incidents categorised as (i) access denied, (ii) browsing, (iii) password abuse, (iv) privilege abuse, (v) data stolen/disclosed, (vi) files deleted/damaged, (vii) fraud and (viii) other.

Bob Ainsworth: holding answer 31 January 2002
	Reports are made to the United Incident Reporting and Alert Scheme (UNIRAS) by a wide variety of critical national infrastructure organisations, including Government Departments, on an in-confidence basis.
	For the period of 1 January 1999 to 29 January 2002 the totals for reports submitted by Government Departments, not capable of being split between external and internal incidents without disproportionate cost, are:
	
		
			  Number 
		
		
			 Hacking incidents of all kinds 13,146 
			 Browsing 47 
			 Password abuse 11 
			 Privilege abuse 30 
			 Data stolen/disclosed 10 
			 Files deleted/damaged 23 
			 Access denied 12,929 
			 Fraud 2

Terrorist Videos

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what plans he has to prevent the (a) import, (b) copying and (c) distribution of videos similar to those produced by GSPC and available in Finsbury Park mosque;
	(2)  if he will make a statement about the action he proposes to take in relation to the videos produced by GSPC being distributed at Finsbury Park mosque.

David Blunkett: holding answer 31 January 2002
	I have already made it clear that anyone breaking the law and inciting violence, whether under the provisions of the Terrorism Act, Race Relations Act or the Public Order Act will be prosecuted. Importation of obscene material is an offence under section 42 of the Customs Consolidation Act 1876. The Obscene Publications Act 1959 makes it a criminal offence to publish any article (including videos) which is considered to be obscene.
	In the first instance it is the responsibility of the police to decide whether there are sufficient grounds to launch a criminal investigation and that of the Crown Prosecution Service to decide whether there is sufficient evidence to bring a prosecution. The Metropolitan police are investigating the content and sale of these videos and are discussing with the Crown Prosecuting Service to determine whether prosecutions are possible.

Drug Co-ordinator Annual Report

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the next annual report by the drug co-ordinator will be published.

Bob Ainsworth: Following the election last year, responsibility for delivering the National Drugs Strategy transferred to my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary. The Home Office will publish a report on progress in the summer.

Child Prostitution

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what guidelines the Department issues to police forces on dealing with child prostitution and promoting relevant inter-agency protocols; and if he will make a statement.

Keith Bradley: The Government believe that children involved in prostitution are primarily the victims of abuse and that those adults who take advantage of them whether by pimping or by buying their sexual services, are child abusers.
	We also believe that a multi-agency approach to this problem is needed, including local authority, educational establishments and Area Child Protection Committees as well as the police. We are committed to raising awareness and providing clear guidance to police forces and other relevant agencies.
	The Home Office and the Department of Health published "Safeguarding Children Involved in Prostitution" in May 2000. This provided guidance on establishing a framework and a protocol for successful multi-agency working.
	The guidance stresses that those under 18 who engage in prostitution are victims and ought to be treated as such. Wherever possible criminal justice action should be pursued against those who directly abuse children through prostitution or seek to exploit them commercially as prostitutes.

Child Prostitution

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prosecutions for child abuse involved child or youth prostitution in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement.

Keith Bradley: Statistics for convictions for the last 12 months are not yet available.
	More generally, statistics detailing prosecutions for offences related to child abuse do not indicate whether the child victim was commercially sexually exploited or not. The recommendations made by the Sex Offences Review to Government on reforming the law on sex offences were published in "Setting the Boundaries" in July 2000. One of the proposals was to create a new offence of commercial sexual exploitation of a child through prostitution or pornography. We are currently analysing more than 700 responses received during the consultation process.

Anti-terrorism Crime and Security Act

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people had been detained under the Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001 by 28 January; how many have applied for bail (a) successfully and (b) unsuccessfully; and if he will make a statement.

David Blunkett: holding answer 1 February 2002
	I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 16 January 2002, Official Report, column 350W.
	Appeals are proceeding in relation to each of those detained before the Special Immigration Appeal Commission. A directions hearing was held on 28 January and a substantive hearing will be set in due course.

Intrusive Surveillance

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many covert surveillance operations were authorised in each year from 1999 to date under (a) the Police Act 1997 and (b) the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000.

Bob Ainsworth: holding answer 4 February 2002
	I refer to the reply given by my right hon. Friend the Minister of State on 24 January 2002, Official Report, column 1093W. In addition the Prison Service Agency has carried out seven intrusive surveillance operation since 22 March 2001. The intelligence services have carried out a number of intrusive surveillance operations or investigations: I do not intend to comment further on these.
	No other records are centrally held of the number of non-intrusive covert surveillance operations authorised under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000.

Burglaries (Telford)

David Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many recorded burglaries have taken place in Telford in each year since 1992.

John Denham: Information on numbers of certain offences has been collected centrally at police Basic Command Unit (BCU), and Crime and Disorder Reduction partnership level, since 1 April 1999. The Home Office statistical bulletin "Recorded Crime England and Wales, 12 months to March 2001", published on 19 July 2001, shows that in the Telford BCU there were 1,507 burglaries in a dwelling in the year ending March 2000, and 1,065 such offences in the year ending March 2001, a decrease of 29 per cent.

Fear of Crime

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what research his Department has commissioned into fear of crime among older people; how actual crime levels compare to perceptions of crime; and what measures his Department is taking to tackle (a) the perception and (b) the reality.

John Denham: holding answer 4 February 2002
	The Home Office is in the process of carrying out a research study on how crime and fear of crime affects older people. The findings of this study will be published in due course and will cover prevalence of crime against older people, the reporting of such crime to the police, and repeat victimisation. It will also examine how fear of crime among older people is affected by the area in which they live, by past experiences and by other characteristics and their perceptions of the police and criminal justice system.
	The Home Office Public Service Agreement (PSA) fear of crime target relates specifically to fear of violent crime, burglary and vehicle crime—the categories of crime which are of most concern to the public as measured by the British Crime Survey (BCS). The BCS shows that perceptions of crime do not necessarily follow actual trends in crime. This is particularly the case for older people where the percentage of people who feel it is very or fairly likely that they will be a victim of crime within the next year is significantly higher than the number who actually do become victims.
	A communication strategy is being developed to address this misperception, with key themes identified by research and targeted at geographical areas where fear of crime is greatest and groups of people who fear crime the most.
	The assurance agenda within the police reform programme can also be expected to increase feelings of public safety while the Home Office's Reducing Burglary Initiative includes a number of programmes which will target burglary against the elderly in particular.

Police

Annabelle Ewing: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if police officers in Scotland receive a housing allowance.

John Denham: holding answer 4 February 2002
	This is a devolved matter for Scottish Ministers.

Police

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to his answer of 16 January 2002, Official Report, columns 355–56W, on Brixton police, which London police stations were not accepting reports of minor crime over the telephone (a) at times during 2001 and (b) between 24 December 2001 and 11 January 2002.

John Denham: I understand that the information requested is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Extremist Religious Groups

David Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what information he has collated on levels of recruitment to extremist religious groups; and if he will make a statement.

David Blunkett: The police and the Security Service are aware of the activities of individuals connected with extremist religious groups and the police continue to monitor their statements for any evidence of offences being committed. Particular attention is given to the possibility of any offences under Part III of the Public Order Act 1986 which deals with incitement to racial hatred and other legislation relating to racial hatred.
	The police and the Security Service take all threats seriously and attach a high priority to monitoring and countering any possible activities in the country by foreign extremists. Any credible information is fully investigated. An investigation which yields evidence that an organisation or individuals are supporting terrorism will result in the appropriate action being taken.

Sex Offenders

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has for voluntary chemical castration of habitual sex offenders.

Beverley Hughes: At any one time a small number of sex offenders will be being treated with antilibidinal drugs in prison. Research has shown these drugs to be effective only where libido is an important contributor to a person's offending behaviour. The majority of sex offenders, who act from feelings of rage, power or violence, would not be expected to benefit from this form of treatment.
	Treatment with antilibidinal drugs in prison is initiated only after assessment by, and on the recommendation of, a consultant psychiatrist specialising in the treatment of sex offenders, taking account of the nature of the particular individual's sex offending and whether the likely benefits of treatment outweighed the risks and side effects. Treatment would only go ahead with the informed consent of the prisoner concerned. The specialist would also be expected to advise on arrangements for the continuation of treatment on the prisoner's release, as the drugs need to be taken regularly to maintain their effect.
	The national health service has commissioned a study of the feasibility of undertaking further research on the effectiveness of a different group of drugs in the management of sex offenders in both prison and the community.

Leicestershire Constabulary

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police officers are employed in the Leicestershire Constabulary; and on what grade.

John Denham: The latest information available is for 30 September 2001 and is given in the table.
	
		
			 Rank Number of officers 
		
		
			 Chief Constable 1 
			 Assistant Chief Constable 2 
			 Superintendents 17 
			 Chief Inspectors 20 
			 Inspectors 90 
			 Sergeants 261 
			 Constables 1,671 
			 Total all ranks 2,062 
		
	
	Source:
	Home Office Statistical Bulletin—Police Service Strength 30 September 2001
	Leicestershire Constabulary also employed 691 civilian support staff on 30 September 2001.

Crime and Disorder Partnerships

Ann Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how he will allocate the money being made available from the Capital Modernisation Fund to Crime and Disorder partnerships in England and Wales to assist small retailers in deprived areas.

John Denham: My right hon. Friend the Home Secretary announced on 27 June 2001 the provision of £15 million over three years from the Capital Modernisation Fund to assist small retailers in deprived areas to improve the security of their businesses. £3 million is available in the 2001–02 financial year, with a further £6 million in both 2002–03 and 2003–04.
	This money, which is being spent on schemes identified by regional crime reduction directors, in conjunction with Crime and Disorder Reduction partnerships, will be used to help small retailers to improve security. This will be achieved by employing a variety of interventions, including enhancing the security of individual premises and improving the environment of shopping centres.
	I am now able to announce the specific projects which will receive funding from the 2001–02 allocation. £100,000 of the first year funding of £3 million has been set aside for administration and evaluation. The remaining £2.9 million has been distributed to regions in England and Wales using a straightforward formula based on relevant and readily available information. The formula shares 30 per cent. of funds equally between the nine regions in England and Wales, allocates 30 per cent. based on the proportion of population living in the 10 per cent. most deprived wards and 40 per cent. on levels of recorded crimes which impact most on retailers. The regional allocation of project funds for 2002–03 and 2003–04 will be announced in due course.
	I have placed in the Library a paper showing the allocation of funds to individual projects. I have also written to hon. Members in England and Wales who have projects in their constituencies.

EDUCATION AND SKILLS

Qualified Teacher Status

Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many newly qualified teachers had failed to achieve the award of qualified teacher status by 31 December 2001.

Stephen Timms: Newly qualified teachers have, by definition, achieved the award of qualified teacher status. However, the Induction Standards include a requirement that teachers who qualified between 1 May 2000 and 30 April 2001 must pass the numeracy skills test before the satisfactory completion of induction. As of 31 December 2001, there were 79 newly qualified teachers who had registered for the numeracy skills test but still had not passed. These teachers have until 31 August 2002 to pass the test.

Teachers

Phil Willis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many teachers will reach the age of 60 in each of the next five school years.

Stephen Timms: The numbers of teachers in regular full-time service in the maintained schools sector in England at 31 March 2000 who will reach the age of 60 in the next five academic years are as follows:
	
		
			 Date of birth School year in which teacher will reach age 60 Number of teachers 
		
		
			 1 September 1941 to 31 August 1942 1 September 2001 to 31 August 2002 3,380 
			 1 September 1942 to 31 August 1943 1 September 2002 to 31 August 2003 4,700 
			 1 September 1943 to 31 August 1944 1 September 2003 to 31 August 2004 6,010 
			 1 September 1944 to 31 August 1945 1 September 2004 to 31 August 2005 6,870 
			 1 September 1945 to 31 August 1946 1 September 2005 to 31 August 2006 8,810 
		
	
	Note:
	The data are provisional.

Student Teachers

Ian Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how the decision on the cut-out point for incentive payments to PGCE students was arrived at.

Stephen Timms: Teacher training bursaries were designed to encourage more graduates to apply for and enter courses of initial teacher training from 2000–01 onwards. Consequently, it was decided in March 2000 that those graduates who had commenced training before 1 September 2000, or before 1 September 1999 in the case of those following two-year full-time Postgraduate Certificate in Education courses, would not be eligible for these payments. Following representations from hon. Members and others, my right hon. Friend subsequently announced that, for reasons of equity, eligibility for the training bursaries would be extended to those whose courses had begun before 1 September 2000 and who remained in attendance on 20 April 2001.

Tuition Fees

Alistair Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what proportion of the sums raised by tuition fees in higher education has been directly remitted to higher education institutions; and if she will make a statement.

Margaret Hodge: Tuition fees, whether paid by students or the taxpayer, are paid directly to higher education institutions.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

School Sports Co-ordinators

Andy Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what estimate she has made of the total cost of the school sports co-ordinator programme in 2001–02; and if she will estimate the total cost of the school sports co-ordinator programme in September 2004.

Kim Howells: Sport England estimate the cost of implementation in 2001–02 to be £15 million.
	Sport England have been allocated £90 million to implement the school sports co-ordinator programme by September 2004, which is supplemented by £19.76 million from the New Opportunities Fund for out of school hours sporting activities run by school sports co-ordinators.

School Sports Co-ordinators

Andy Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many school sports co-ordinators will be in post by (a) September 2002, (b) September 2003 and (c) September 2004.

Kim Howells: Sport England estimate there will be 518 school sports co-ordinators in place by September 2002. Sport England are on course to reach the target set for 1,000 school sports co-ordinators by September 2004. The figure of school sports co-ordinators for September 2003 is not possible to predict accurately at this time.

Private Finance Initiative

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the total external spend by her Department was on Private Finance Initiative consultants in each of the last four years; how many full-time equivalent consultants were employed over this period; how many billed consultancy days there were per year; what the implied average cost of each PFI consultant was; how many consultancy firms were used by her Department over this period; and if she will make a statement.

Kim Howells: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport's total external spend on PFI consultants was: 1998—£27,000; 1999—£45,992; 2000—£20,247; and 2001—£25,759. All of this was incurred by the Royal Parks Agency, which used four consultancy firms. The information relating to the number of full-time equivalent consultants, billed consultancy days and the implied average cost of each consultant could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Golden Jubilee

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on the state of preparations reached for celebrations between 1 and 4 June for the Queen's Jubilee celebrations.

Tessa Jowell: Preparations for the programme of events that I announced on 3 August 2001, are on schedule. Further announcements will be made about the concerts in Buckingham Palace gardens and the carnival pageant when the final details have been settled.

Golden Jubilee

Tim Yeo: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will publish the objectives of the Golden Jubilee Office and make a statement on its progress in achieving its objectives so far.

Tessa Jowell: holding answer 28 January 2002
	The Queen's programme is being planned by Buckingham Palace. Working closely with the Palace, the Golden Jubilee Office is liaising with key Government Departments and other organisations in supporting and facilitating the celebrations. The 61 separate initiatives for the celebrations are being delivered effectively through 12 project plans, all of which are on target.

Golden Jubilee

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on the effectiveness and organisation of the planning of the celebration of the Queen's Golden Jubilee.

Tessa Jowell: holding answer 30 January 2002
	The Queen's programme is being planned by Buckingham Palace. Working closely with the Palace, the Golden Jubilee Office is liaising with key Government Departments and other organisations in supporting and facilitating the celebrations. The 61 separate initiatives for the celebrations are being delivered effectively through 12 project plans, all of which are on target.

Golden Jubilee

Tim Yeo: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps she has taken since her appointment to ensure that the Queen's Golden Jubilee is celebrated in a manner that reflect the wishes of the public.

Tessa Jowell: holding answer 28 January 2002
	The Government are working closely with Buckingham Palace to facilitate the celebrations for the Queen's Golden Jubilee in a way that embraces the six themes for the jubilee: celebration; giving thanks; service; involving the whole community; looking forward as well as back; and the Commonwealth, while adhering to her wish that there should be no undue expenditure from public funds. It is for local communities to decide how they wish to celebrate the Jubilee.
	To help communities plan their local celebrations, the Golden Jubilee Office has distributed 20,000 Golden Jubilee celebrations toolkits to councils, Citizens' Advice Bureaux, libraries, a wide range of organisations across England, Scotland and Wales and the media. A further 10,000 copies have been subsequently requested. A reprint has been ordered to meet the current high level of demand. In addition, a team of representatives from Buckingham Palace and the Golden Jubilee Office are delivering joint briefings across the United Kingdom. To date, they have briefed over 450 organisations. More briefings are planned.

Golden Jubilee

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what action she is taking to encourage local authorities to organise events to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the accession of Her Majesty the Queen; and if she will make a statement.

Tessa Jowell: The Government are working closely with Buckingham Palace to facilitate the celebrations for the Queen's Golden Jubilee in a way that embraces the six themes for the jubilee: celebration; giving thanks; service; involving the whole community; looking forward as well as back; and the Commonwealth, while adhering to her wish that there should be no undue expenditure from public funds. It is for local communities to decide how they wish to celebrate the Jubilee.
	To help communities plan their local celebrations, the Golden Jubilee Office has distributed 20,000 Golden Jubilee celebrations toolkits to councils, Citizens' Advice Bureaux, libraries, a wide range of organisations across England, Scotland and Wales and the media. A further 10,000 copies have been subsequently requested. A reprint has been ordered to meet the current high level of demand. In addition, a team of representatives from Buckingham Palace and the Golden Jubilee Office are delivering joint briefings across the United Kingdom. To date, they have briefed over 450 organisations. More briefings are planned.

Invoice Payments

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will list the instances in which her Department, agencies and non-departmental public bodies failed to pay valid invoices within 30 days or after the agreed credit period in the financial year 2000–01.

Kim Howells: The information requested on the Department and its agency, the Royal Parks is in the following table:
	
		
			  DCMS The Royal Parks Agency 
		
		
			 Number of valid invoices paid 6,125 4,411 
			 Number of invoices paid outside 30 days or after the agreed credit period 62 249 
			 Percentage of invoices paid on target 99 94 
		
	
	The Department has 66 non-departmental public bodies and does not keep central records of their invoice payment performance. The details requested can be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Overseas Visitors

David Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many overseas visitors came to the United Kingdom in each year from 1998; and if he will make a statement.

Kim Howells: The number of visits was as follows:
	
		Thousand 
		
			 Year Visits from overseas 
		
		
			 1998 25,745 
			 1999 25,394 
			 2000 25,209 
		
	
	Visit numbers fell slightly between 1998 and 2000, but overall these were strong years for inbound tourism to the UK, with a record level of spending by overseas visitors in 2000 of £12.8 billion, compared to £12.7 billion in 1998 and £12.5 billion in 1999. Figures for the full year 2001 are not yet available.

Seal Watching

Shona McIsaac: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many seal-watching establishments there are in England and Wales; how many visitors are estimated to visit these establishments each year; how many people are estimated to work in such establishments each year; and what the total gross revenue per annum of the industry is estimated to be.

Kim Howells: The Department does not have the information to answer the questions raised.

Departmental Secondments (Energy Industry)

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many staff were seconded between (a) BP, (b) Shell, (c) Enron, (d) Exxon-Mobil, (e) Conoco, (f) Texaco and (g) TotalFinaElf and her Department in (i) 1999–2000, (ii) 2000–01 and (iii) April 2001 to the latest date for which figures are available.

Kim Howells: The Department has seconded no members of staff to these organisations during the periods quoted.

Licensing Laws

Mark Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment she has made of the impact of licensing pubs and clubs to sell alcohol 24 hours a day on residents of the cities of London and Westminster.

Kim Howells: Our assessment was set out clearly in the White Paper "Time for Reform" (Cm. 4696) published on 10 April 2000. We proposed that the conditions attached to the licences of pubs and clubs should be set locally by the local authority on the basis of the balance of the operator's requirements, resident views, and police and fire authority assessments. To counter and minimise public disorder resulting from fixed closing times, we intend to introduce flexible opening hours as a condition of the licence for each premises, with the potential for some venues to operate up to 24 hour-opening, seven days a week, subject to consideration of the impact on local residents. We intend to implement these proposals by means of primary legislation as soon as parliamentary time permits. The changes will beneficial to the police because it will help them cope with late night disorder and reduce crime; for business because it will sweep away red tape and offer them real flexibility; for citizens and visitors to this country alike by creating a safer environment in which they can have greater choice; for families by creating more opportunities for them to spend leisure time together without fear of intimidation or disorder; and for local residents, who will acquire a bigger say in the licensing process which will be properly accountable to them.

National Lottery

Khalid Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will establish an inquiry into the national lottery sales improvement programme, in particular the proposal to remove terminals from retailers with less than £1,500 per week turnover.

Kim Howells: We have no plans to do so.

Digital Television

Tim Yeo: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport by what geographical areas statistics on take up of digital television are collated.

Kim Howells: holding answer 4 February 2002
	Take-up figures are not currently available for the regions, but we are currently examining whether useful data may be collected cost effectively.

Digital Television

Tim Yeo: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport on what date the viewers panel established to advise the Government on the consumers' view on digital switchover reported.

Kim Howells: holding answer 4 February 2002
	The Viewers' Panel Report: Digital Decisions: Viewer Choice and Digital Television was submitted to me on 6 December 2001. Copies are in the Libraries of both Houses.

Secondments

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many staff were seconded between (a) PWC Consulting and PricewaterhouseCoopers, (b) Ernst & Young, (c) Deloitte & Touche, (d) KPMG and (e) Andersen and her Department in (i) 1999–2000, (ii) 2000–01 and (iii) April 2001 to the latest date for which figures are available.

Kim Howells: The Department has seconded no members of staff to these organisations during the periods quoted.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Refrigerator Disposal

Michael Jack: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will publish a diary of events leading to the implementation of the EU Directive on the disposal of refrigerators and freezers; what discussions her Department has had in the last five years with the retail industry on this matter; and if she will make a statement.

Michael Meacher: holding answer 5 February 2002
	In 1998, the original European Commission proposal for a regulation on substances that deplete the ozone layer (ODS) did not require the recovery and recycling of ODS from the refrigeration equipment unless it was "practicable". An amendment to the article on recovery in the draft regulation was agreed in February 1999 at the EC Environment Council meeting. Between February 1999 and mid-2001, UK officials repeatedly asked the Commission for formal clarification of the position of ODS in the insulating foam of refrigeration equipment. The occasions on which this was raised by the UK and other member states, either directly or implicitly during discussion of items for clarification, are as follows:
	EC Regulation 3093/94 Management Committee meeting, 23 February 1999;
	EC Regulation 3093/94 Management Committee meeting, 11 October 1999;
	EC Regulation 3093/94 Management Committee meeting, 1 March 2000;
	Margins of the Montreal Protocol meeting in Geneva, July 2000;
	DETR letter to European Commission dated 11 September 2000;
	EC Regulation 2037/2000 Management Committee meeting, 4–6 October 2000;
	DETR letter to European Commission dated 30 January 2001;
	EC Regulation 2037/2000 Management Committee meeting, 13–14 March 2001;
	EC Regulation 2037/2000 Extraordinary Management Committee meeting, 11–12 June 2001.
	EC Regulation 2037/2000 entered into force on 1 October 2000. In June 2001, the European Commission formally clarified that mandatory recovery and recycling also applied to ODS in fridge insulating foam as of 1 January 2002.
	The Department, with assistance from colleagues in DTI, has been in regular contact with the refrigeration retail industry on the effect of legislation. Retailers were represented at refrigeration sector group meetings at which the regulation was discussed.
	Since the middle of last year, the Department has worked closely with retailers and other stakeholders on practical arrangements to deal with the disposal of waste fridges and freezers. Representatives of the retail industry attended several stakeholder meetings and a number of smaller meetings to discuss the impact of the regulation on retailer take-back schemes. We are continuing to work with retailers to identify means to encourage the reinstatement of take-back schemes.

Refrigerator Disposal

Boris Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much funding Oxfordshire county council will receive in order to dispose of refrigerators.

Michael Meacher: £6 million has been added to the provisional local government finance settlement for 2002–03 for the costs of implementing the ozone depleting substances regulation relating to the period 1 January 2002 to 31 March 2002. This will be distributed to local authorities using standard spending assessments (SSA). The extra money has been added to the upper tier sub-block of the Environmental, Protective and Cultural Services SSA. We are continuing to assess the impacts of the regulation and will determine what further action is required beyond that.

Hedgerow Protection

Andrew Bennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans she has to revise the legislation on protection of hedgerows.

Michael Meacher: A consultation document that includes proposals for changes to the Hedgerows Regulations 1997 is in preparation. We hope to issue it shortly.

Waste Disposal

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will list for Buckinghamshire by (a) tonnage and (b) percentage, the amount of waste disposal by (i) landfill, (ii) recycling and (iii) incineration in each of the last five years.

Michael Meacher: Based on estimates from the Department's Waste Management Survey, the amounts of municipal waste for Buckinghamshire are listed as follows:
	
		Thousand tonnes 
		
			  Landfill Percentage Recycled Percentage 
		
		
			 1996–97 287.0 96 11.4 4 
			 1997–98 216.1 96 9.7 4 
			 1998–99 200.1 94 12.9 6 
			 1999–2000 206.6 91 20.3 9 
		
	
	
		Thousand tonnes 
		
			  Incineration Percentage Total 
		
		
			 1996–97 0 0 298.3 
			 1997–98 0 0 225.8 
			 1998–99 0.3 less than 0.5 213.3 
			 1999–2000 0.2 less than 0.5 227.1 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. 2000–01 data are currently being collected from local authorities.
	2. Totals and percentages may not add, due to rounding.
	Information, including the amounts of industrial and commercial waste, for Buckinghamshire are published in Strategic Waste Management Assessment 2000: South East, Environment Agency. Data are available for one year only and based on estimates from the Environment Agency's National Waste Production Survey.
	
		Industrial and commercial waste 1998
		
			  Thousand tonnes Percentage 
		
		
			 Land disposal 416 51 
			 Land recovery 1 less than 0.5 
			 Re-used 29 4 
			 Recycled 253 31 
			 Thermal 6 less than 0.5 
			 Other 117 14 
			 Total 822 100 
		
	
	Note:
	Totals and percentages may not add, due to rounding.

Rural White Paper

Colin Breed: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to her answer to the hon. Member for Stroud (Mr. Drew) of 27 November 2001, Official Report, column 859W, on the Rural White Paper, what proportion of the announced funds and schemes, broken down by category, has been spent to date during 2001–02.

Alun Michael: For 2000–01, £80 million has been allocated to local education authorities through the small schools fund, including those covering predominantly rural areas. Information on actual expenditure of the small schools fund for 2001–02 is not available. Local education authorities will return monitoring forms in May, which will give a broad indication for the 2001–02 financial year.
	In 2001–02, £30 million has been allocated (by means of a formula) under the rural policing fund to the 31 rural police authorities. Forces are expected to include in their best value annual policing plan information on how they expect to spend or have spent the additional funds. The Home Office do not routinely keep information on how much has been spent in any financial year—it is a matter for each individual police authority.
	The £2 million Government fund to support volunteer and community initiatives to maintain or reopen post office facilities in rural areas came into operation in September 2001. Since then just over £29,000 has been spent on five initiatives.
	The child care figure of 8,728 new places refers to the financial year between April 2000 and March 2001. From April 2001 to September 2001 Cornwall, Devon, Durham and Lincolnshire partnerships have reported the creation of 4,804 child care places. Figures for October to December are not yet available.
	For 2001–02 £62 million has been allocated to improve rural bus services. Up until the end of January £28.8 million had been spent on Rural Bus Subsidy Grant and £8.8 million on Rural Bus Challenge. I understand that the DTLR expect to spend a total of £60 million by the end of the financial year.
	The new Countryside Agency Grant schemes have spent the following up until 31 December 2001: Community Services Grant £597,000; Parish Plans Fund £143,000; and Parish Transport Fund £80,000.
	Information on expenditure and assistance to date on market towns is not currently available.

Abandoned Cars

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what action she (a) has taken and (b) plans to take to reduce the number of abandoned cars; and if she will make a statement.

Michael Meacher: The Government recently consulted on a package of measures to help deal with the abandoned vehicles problems. The main proposals were: reducing the notice periods used by local authorities so that abandoned vehicles could be removed more quickly; enabling local authorities to use DVLA's powers to remove unlicensed vehicles and to provide better access for them to DVLA's records; and promoting exchanges of best practice between local authorities with a view to deterring vehicles from being abandoned, bringing forward changes to vehicle registration and licensing procedures to ensure greater accuracy of DVLA's vehicle record.
	The consultation period closed on 31 January and the Government are now considering the responses.

Landfill Sites

Elfyn Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  if she will list, by constituency, the number of landfill sites accepting (a) domestic and (b) toxic waste, within a two mile radius of residential property;
	(2)  if she will list, by constituency, the number of domestic residences located within a two mile radius of landfill sites accepting (a) domestic and (b) toxic waste.

Michael Meacher: The Department does not hold this information and to collate it would be disproportionately costly.
	The Small Area Health Statistic Unit study on "Health Outcomes in Populations Living Around Landfill Sites" published last year found that about 80 per cent. of the population of Great Britain lived within 2 km of a landfill site. However, the majority of these sites are closed and therefore are no longer accepting any waste for disposal. This figure includes sites that accept both special (hazardous) waste and non-special waste or have taken such wastes in the past.

Carbon Trust

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the work programme is of the Carbon Trust; and if she will make a statement.

Michael Meacher: The Carbon Trust is setting up a range of initiatives to accelerate the take up of cost effective, low-carbon technologies and measures in the non- domestic sector. The strategy is published on the Carbon Trust's website www.thecarbontrust.co.uk.
	The Carbon Trust is currently preparing a business plan outlining programme work for the next financial year.

Common Agricultural Policy

Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what proposals she has for the provision of free farm business and environmental assessment advice by her Department on Common Agricultural Policy support for individual farms; what plans she has to increase environmental and rural development scheme funding via the redirection of CAP subsidy payments; and if she will make a statement.

Alun Michael: The report of the Policy Commission on the Future of Farming and Food has made recommendations both on the provision of free farm business and environmental assessment advice and increasing funding for agri-environment schemes by increasing the rate of modulation of CAP subsidy payments. As my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State said when the report was launched on Tuesday 29 January, the Government will publish their strategy for sustainable farming, in response to the report, in the summer.

UK Nuclear Plants

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the levels of radioactive contamination are around UK nuclear plants; and what the best safety distance is.

Michael Meacher: There is no simple, direct relationship between the dose arising from any radioactive discharges from UK nuclear plants and proximity to them. All radioactive discharges from UK nuclear plants are well within the national and international limit of 1 millisievert a year. In setting discharge limits, the Environment Agency has to be sure that no one would be exposed to a dose from man-made sources of ionising radiation greater than this. (There are separate dose limits for a single site and for a single new source of ionising radiation of 0.5 and 0.3 millisieverts respectively). There are no cases in the UK where any of these limits are breached. In all cases the most exposed members of the public receive a dose which is considerably below the appropriate limit.
	The Environment Agency has recently published its report "Radioactivity in the Environment Report for 2000". This is the latest in a series of such reports and contains a summary and radiological assessment of the agency's monitoring programmes.
	The principal conclusions were that discharges of radioactivity into the environment reported by the operators of the major sites during 2000 were well below the authorised discharge levels; concentrations of radionuclides in water, sediment, soil and grass were broadly similar to those in previous years; activity concentrations in air, rain, and sources of drinking water remained low during 2000; and all the estimated doses from radionuclides in sediment, soil and water were below the public dose limit and in many cases the estimated doses were much less than 1 per cent. of the dose limit.

Foot and Mouth

Liz Blackman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether she intends to review the existing contingency plans for foot and mouth disease.

Margaret Beckett: An interim operational contingency plan is being prepared, based on current policy and experience of the recent disease outbreak, and building on existing relationships with other Government Departments and stakeholders. The plan in no way seeks to prejudge the outcomes of the official inquiries, but is a sensible interim response. It codifies and pulls together the operational response regime that was developed during the recent outbreak to compliment the existing strategic framework and the detailed veterinary guidance and instructions.

DEFENCE

Northern Ireland

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many soldiers were (a) sent to and (b) withdrawn from Northern Ireland in each of the past five years; what plans he has for the further reduction of army presence; what provisions have been made for the return of military personnel; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: The level of armed forces personnel in Northern Ireland fluctuates throughout the year depending on the security situation. I have therefore based the answer on the number of personnel under the command of the General Officer Commanding Northern Ireland (GOC NI) at 31 December in each of the last five years:
	
		
			 As at 31 December Number of armed force personnel 
		
		
			 1997 17,183 
			 1998 16,824 
			 1999 15,910 
			 2000 15,112 
			 2001 14,551 
		
	
	These figures include those troops stationed in Northern Ireland as well as those troops under the command of the GOC NI that are rear based in Great Britain and can be called forward to the Province as and when required. In addition, other troops can be made available to the GOC NI from Land Command if required, for example, during the height of the summer marching season.
	The armed forces are in support of the police who have primacy for security and liaison between the PSNI and the Army which ensures military support is kept under review and at the right level. When it is assessed that the level of threat has reduced sufficiently, consideration will be given to further reductions in the number of armed force personnel based in the Province. Should it be assessed that the level of threat has increased, consideration will be given to returning military personnel that are currently rear based.

Scottish Barracks

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans there are to alter barrack accommodation in Scotland; and where these alterations are located.

Lewis Moonie: holding answer 1 February 2002
	Plans to alter or expand barrack accommodation in Scotland were included in the Single Living Accommodation improvements that were announced by the Secretary of State on 14 March 2001.
	On current plans the programme in Scotland includes an investment of around £170 million in 5,200 bed-spaces in the period 2002–10. 11 service establishments are involved: HMNB Clyde, HMS Caledonia Rosyth and RM Condor Arbroath, the Army barracks at Edinburgh Castle, Craigie Hall and Glencorse, and the RAF stations at Kinloss, Lossiemouth, Saxa ford, Leuchars and Buchan.
	The bed-spaces will be delivered by prime contracts, including the new Defence Estates Regional Prime Contract for Scotland, which is expected to be awarded in autumn 2002.

No-fly Zones (Iraq)

Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence on how many occasions (a) coalition aircraft and (b) UK aircraft patrolling the southern no-fly zone in Iraq have (i) detected violations of the no-fly zones, (ii) a direct threat to coalition aircraft and (iii) released ordnance, in each quarter since January 1999 to date stating for each quarter the tonnage of ordnance released; in percentage terms what has been (A) the nature of the violation detected, (B) the nature of the threat detected and (C) the category of target attacked; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: The information is as follows:
	(i) The numbers of southern NFZ violations by quarter since January 1999 are:
	
		
			  1999 2000 2001 
		
		
			 First quarter 35 3 3 
			 Second quarter 9 0 2 
			 Third quarter 6 4 4 
			 Fourth quarter 3 1 1 
			  
			 Total 53 8 10 
		
	
	No-fly zone (NFZ) violations can be detected in several ways, including by tactical aircraft. 100 per cent. of violations were incursions into the NFZ by Iraqi military aircraft.
	(ii) We do not hold information in the form requested about recorded threats prior to 2000. In 2000 and 2001 coalition aircraft recorded threats on a total of 918 occasions. Reports from UK aircraft indicated that they were threatened or attacked as follows, by quarter:
	
		
			  2000 2001 
		
		
			 First quarter 4 73 
			 Second quarter 8 71 
			 Third quarter 36 45 
			 Fourth quarter 28 15 
			  
			 Total 76 204 
		
	
	In 2000 and 2001, 7 per cent. of the total were radar threats; 6 per cent. were attacks by surface-to-air missiles; and 87 per cent. others, primarily attacks by anti-aircraft guns.
	(iii) The tonnage of ordnance released by coalition aircraft in the no-fly zone, by quarter, is as follows.
	
		
			   1999  2000  2001  
			  Coalition UK Coalition UK Coalition UK 
		
		
			 First quarter 120.5 31.5 35 3.5 50.5 8.5 
			 Second quarter 79 21 45.5 6 11.5 2.5 
			 Third quarter 135 23.5 42.5 5 39 13 
			 Fourth quarter 45 12.5 32 6 6 1 
			 Total 379.5 88.5 155 20.5 107 25 
		
	
	100 per cent. of ordnance released was in self-defence responses by coalition aircraft against military targets in the Iraqi Integrated Air Defence System.

No-fly Zones (Iraq)

Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when, since January 1999, coalition aircraft patrolling the (a) northern and (b) southern no-fly zones in Iraq have hit targets that were different from the intended target, stating in each case (i) the nature of the intended target, (ii) the nature of the actual target hit, (iii) the estimated number of civilians killed and (iv) the reason why the unintended target was hit; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: All targets attacked in self defence by coalition aircraft patrolling the no-fly zones are military elements of the Iraqi Integrated Air Defence System.
	On the rare occasions where ordnance has failed to hit the intended target, it has almost invariably landed on open ground. It is extremely difficult to assess collateral damage, or numbers of civilian casualties caused by the remainder, despite the painstaking Battle Damage Assessment (BDA) that the coalition carries out every time ordnance is released. However, it is possible to demonstrate categorically that many of the Iraqi claims of collateral damage and civilian casualties are untrue. There have, for example, been several instances when Iraqis have claimed civilian casualties when coalition aircraft have not been flying, or when BDA has confirmed that only military targets were hit. Indeed, there is good evidence that, on several occasions where Saddam has made claims of civilian casualties, it has been caused by Iraqi artillery shells or missiles, recklessly fired at coalition aircraft, falling to earth in built up areas.
	In all cases of failure to hit the intended target by ordnance released from UK aircraft, the failure was caused by ordnance malfunction. We do not hold information for coalition partners.
	Coalition aircraft only attack military targets in self-defence. We make every effort to select targets and to employ precision guided munitions in order to minimise the possibility of collateral damage and civilian casualties. Despite these efforts, regrettably, on occasions civilians may have suffered as a result of coalition activity. However, this would be completely avoided if the Iraqis desisted from attacking coalition aircraft.

No-fly Zones (Iraq)

Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of changes to the nature and strength of Iraqi air defences since January 1998; whether improvements to the Iraqi air defence system constitute a threat to coalition aircraft patrolling the no-fly zones; what contribution strikes against Iraqi air defences by coalition aircraft in response to violation of the no-fly zones have made to his assessment; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: Since January 1998, Saddam has continually sought to upgrade his air defence system. Developments since January 1998 include increased use of digital technology and greater mobility and dispersal of radars and weapons.
	Its capability is very carefully monitored to assess the impact of any changes on coalition aircraft patrolling the no-fly zones. The danger to our aircraft is demonstrated by the fact that the Iraqi air defence system has threatened coalition aircraft on around 1,000 occasions over the last two years. The coalition has on occasion responded purely in self-defence using high precision weapons against elements of the Iraqi Air Defence System. There is no doubt these self-defence responses do have an impact in terms of reducing the threat posed to aircraft patrolling the no-fly zones. Other important initiatives, including the UN-sponsored arms embargo on Iraq, also have an impact on the capability of Saddam's air defence infrastructure.
	As long as the Iraqis persist in attempts to shoot down our aircraft, the coalition will continue to take action in self-defence to ensure the safety of our aircrew.

No-fly Zones (Iraq)

Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what activities are deemed violations of the no-fly zones in Iraq; from what date every such activity has been deemed to be a violation; what changes have been made to the definition of a violation of the no-fly zones since January 1998; what changes have been made to authorised reaction to any particular violation since January 1998; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: A violation of the no-fly zones is defined as entry into a zone by Iraqi military aircraft. These activities have been considered violations since the inception of the zones, in April 1991 (north) and August 1992 (south) respectively. There have been no material changes to this definition since January 1998.
	From time to time minor adjustments are made to the authorised self-defence responses to violations of the no-fly zones. I am withholding details for reasons of operational security in accordance with Exemption 1 of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information. However, the basis for any coalition response—self-defence—remains unchanged.

No-fly Zones (Iraq)

Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what activities are deemed to be threats to coalition aircraft in the no-fly zones in Iraq; from what date every such activity has been deemed to be a threat; what changes have been made to the definition of a threat in the no-fly zone since January 1998; what changes have been made to the authorised reaction to any particular threat since January 1998; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: Threats to coalition aircraft patrolling the no-fly zones in Iraq include attacks from Iraqi aircraft, Anti-Aircraft Artillery and/or Surface To Air Missile fire, and acquisition by radar. These activities have been considered threats since the inception of the zones, in April 1991 (north) and August 1992 (south) respectively.
	Detailed procedures governing the operations conducted by coalition aircraft patrolling the no-fly zones are reviewed and amended from time to time. I am withholding details for reasons of operational security under Exemption 1 of Part II of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information. But there have been no fundamental changes to the definition of a threat justifying a response in self defence since January 1998.

Private Finance Initiative

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the total external spend by his Department was on Private Finance Initiative consultants in each of the last four years; how many full-time equivalent consultants were employed over this period; how many billed consultancy days there were per year; what the implied average cost of each PFI consultant was; how many consultancy firms were used by his Department over this period; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: The recorded expenditure on External Assistance specifically in support of PPP/PFI projects in the financial year 2000–01 was £42.67 million. This information was not recorded as a discrete category in the preceding three years.
	The recorded number of consultancy companies used by the Ministry of Defence over the last four years in support of PPP/PFI projects is 52, which includes 18 firms providing legal advice.
	The other information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. More general information is published in the Ministry of Defence's "External Assistance—Expenditure" report; copies of which are available in the Library of the House.

Departmental Salary Costs

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what proportion of the departmental expenditure limit in 2001–02 will be accounted for by salary costs and pension contributions.

Lewis Moonie: Our current estimate is that civilian salary costs and pension contributions will account for 11.5 per cent. of departmental spending.

Territorial Army

Mark Francois: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence who is the most senior serving officer in the Territorial Army; and when he was appointed to his post.

Lewis Moonie: The most senior serving officer in the Territorial Army (TA), by virtue of the date he was appointed, is Brigadier the Duke of Westminster OBE, TD, DL. His appointment is Brigadier AG HQ and his seniority date is 17 January 2000. The Brigadier serving in the most senior TA appointment is however, Brigadier J. R. Thomson, TD, ADC, BA (Hon), MBA, MIMGT, MCIM. His appointment is Brigadier Private Office, Headquarters Land Command and his seniority date is 31 March 2000.

Territorial Army

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the latest actual strength of the TA by unit and location set against its establishment.

Lewis Moonie: I will write to the hon. Member and a copy of my letter will be placed in the Library of the House.

Armed Forces (Outflow)

Mark Francois: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the net outflow was of (a) officers and (b) other ranks from the (i) Army, (ii) Royal Navy, (iii) Royal Air Force and (iv) Royal Marines in 2001.

Adam Ingram: The net flow for officers and other ranks over the last 12 months is as follows:
	
		
			   Strength as at  
			  1 December 2000 1 December 2001 Net flow over 12 months 
		
		
			  Naval Service 
			 Officers 7,714 7,753 39 
			 Other ranks 34,791 34,037 -754 
			 
			  Army 
			 Officers 13,844 13,894 50 
			 Other ranks 95,531 95,627 96 
			 
			  RAF 
			 Officers 11,007 10,833 -174 
			 Other ranks 43,200 42,346 -854 
		
	
	Notes:
	Naval Service includes both Royal Navy and Royal Marines.
	Figures are for UK regular forces (including both trained and untrained personnel), and therefore excludes Gurkhas, full-time reserve service personnel, the Home Service battalions of the Royal Irish Regiment, mobilised reservists and activated reservists.

Warships

David Cairns: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the trade unions' submission to his Modernising Warship Maintenance Initiative.

Adam Ingram: The proposals from the trade unions have been analysed in detail and the results are being considered by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence. The Secretary of State plans to meet representatives of the trade unions shortly, before he reaches a decision on the way ahead.

Warships

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans have been made for the use of HMS Invincible once she has been withdrawn from service; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: No plans have yet been made for the use of HMS Invincible after she is withdrawn from Royal Navy service, which is expected to be towards the end of this decade. Arrangements for her final disposal will be established nearer that time after a careful examination of the most cost beneficial options.

Warships

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether the in-service date for HMS Bulwark will be met; if the construction cost increased during the pre-launch stage; what the final cost of the construction and fitting out stages was; what caused the increases in cost; and if he will make a statement.

Lewis Moonie: There is every confidence that HMS Bulwark's expected in-service date of December 2003 will be achieved. All opportunities are being taken in close consultation with the prime contractor, BAES Marine Barrow-in-Furness, to ensure that there is no slip to the vessels's programme acceptance date. There have been no cost increases during the pre-launch stage. The final construction cost of HMS Bulwark including the fitting out stages is expected to be of the order of £186 million at contract price basis.

Warships

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the projected cost is of maintaining HMS Invincible once she is out of service; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: HMS Invincible is not planned to leave service until towards the end of this decade. It is too early to determine the costs of any maintenance after the vessel has left service.

Eurofighter

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment has been made of the training requirements of RAF pilots for the Eurofighter; what plans there are to use the Hawk 127 system for training; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: The training requirements of all fast jet pilots, including the Eurofighter, are currently being assessed as part of the UK Military Flying Training System (UKMFTS) project. The project is examining the flying training needs of all three services and covers training from entry into formal flying training until arrival at the operational conversion unit. Training Needs Analyses (TNAs) have been carried out to identify the training requirements of Eurofighter pilots once they reach their Operational Conversion Unit. Courses are being designed to ensure their specific training needs are fully met. For UK MFTS, Hawk 127 is one of a number of options for a future advanced fast jet training aircraft. No decisions have yet been made.

Nuclear Weapons

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what discussions his Department has had with its US counterparts concerning Sandia National Laboratory's refurbishment programme for the W76 nuclear package and its arming, fusing and firing mechanism;
	(2)  what discussions his Department has had with its counterparts in the US concerning development of the W76–1 warhead; and if he will make a statement.

Lewis Moonie: Staff from the Defence Procurement Agency's Nuclear Weapons Team hold discussions with their US counterparts as a matter of routine. Conducted under the auspices of the 1958 Mutual Defence Agreement and the 1963 Polaris Sales Agreement, as amended for Trident, the discussions cover all issues of mutual interest, including work on the US W76 warhead, relevant to the safety and reliability of the UK's Trident warhead.

Nuclear Weapons

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the expected service life is for the Mk-4 re-entry vehicle for the Trident D5 missile; and if his Department has plans to extend it.

Adam Ingram: The service life for the UK's Re-entry Assembly (RBA) has been assessed as sufficient, with periodic refurbishment as necessary, to satisfy the needs of the Trident programme as defined in the Strategic Defence Review. As with other key military capabilities, studies into options for obtaining the optimum service life and value for money are undertaken as a matter of routine.

Nuclear Weapons

Frank Cook: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the cost is of work conducted for the UK Trident programme in the past year by (a) Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, (b) Los Alamos National Laboratory and (c) Sandia National Laboratory.

Adam Ingram: The Ministry of Defence contracts with the Department of Energy (DoE) and the Department of Defense rather than direct with the US national laboratories and, as a result, the costs associated with the individual laboratories are not held by the MOD. However, the DoE has provided the following figures for expenditure on the UK Trident programme in US fiscal year 2001, which runs from 1 October 2000 to 30 September 2001:
	
		
			  $ £ 
		
		
			 Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory 0 0 
			 Los Alamos National Laboratory 401,586 249,649 
			 Sandia National Laboratory 2,343,384 1,456,785 
		
	
	Note:
	Average rate of $1.6086/£1 used for conversion

Nuclear Weapons

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Trident D5A missiles his Department intends to purchase.

Adam Ingram: None. We have purchased 58 Trident II (D5) missiles and have no plans to purchase any more.

Chinook

Mark Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when the fleet of Boeing CH-47D Chinook helicopters is due to be replaced; and what interest the United Kingdom has in the Franco-German award of a study contract to Boeing for a jumbo Chinook.

Lewis Moonie: The CH-47D Chinook helicopters in service with the British armed forces comprise the Chinook Mark 2 and the Chinook Mark 2a variants. The out of service date of the Chinook Mark 2 is the middle of the next decade, but we are looking at the possibility of extending its life. The Chinook Mark 2a is expected to remain in service until the mid 2030s.
	We maintain a keen interest in defence-related technological developments and possibilities for collaboration with Allies on procurement projects. However, we do not currently foresee a requirement for a 'jumbo' Chinook.

Aircraft (Afghanistan)

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is the average length of the working day of aircrews in C130Ks operational in Afghanistan.

Adam Ingram: Currently C130K aircrews are working an average of around 10 hours per day.

Aircraft (Afghanistan)

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many C130Js and C130Ks from RAF Lyneham are operational in Afghanistan; how many of them are deployable; and how many are undergoing repair.

Adam Ingram: As of 4 February there were eight C130Ks from RAF Lyneham flying into Afghanistan. All of the aircraft are currently serviceable, and undergo routine maintenance. NO C130Js are currently engaged on operations into Afghanistan.

Aircraft (Afghanistan)

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many 130Ks in Afghanistan have defensive aids suites.

Adam Ingram: All C130Ks operating into Afghanistan are provided with defensive aids. Details vary but for all flights into Afghanistan self protection measures are adequate against the perceived threat.

TRANSPORT, LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND THE REGIONS

Airline Disinfectants

Kevin McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will list (a) the commercial airline flights arriving or departing in the United Kingdom that use pesticide disinfectants, (b) the commercial flights arriving or departing the United Kingdom that require pesticide disinfectants, (c) the different methods used to apply pesticide disinfectants to commercial aircraft arriving or departing in the United Kingdom, (d) the monitoring procedures in place governing the use of pesticides applied to international flights arriving in the United Kingdom and (e) which flights arriving or departing within the United Kingdom use the chemical permthrin as a pesticide disinfectant.

John Spellar: holding answer 10 January 2002
	I will write to my hon. Friend and a copy of my letter will be placed in the Libraries of the House.

Open Skies

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions 
	(1)  if it is his policy to pursue an open skies agreement with the US prior to the European Court ruling on such agreements;
	(2)  what his policy is on securing access to the domestic US market for UK cargo airlines as part of an open skies agreement.

David Jamieson: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my right hon. Friend the Minister for Transport to the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr. Pickles) on 4 February 2002, Official Report, columns 727–28W.

Railway Land Sales

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how much ex-railway land has been sold in each of the last five years.

John Spellar: This information is not readily available in the form requested. However, I understand that 218 sites have been sold by the British Railways Board and BRB (Residuary Ltd.) under the revised guidelines implemented when the moratorium imposed on the sale of non-operational railway land was lifted in September 1999. The sale of operational railway land is a commercial matter for Railtrack, and other privatised companies owning such land.

Lancet Report

Joe Benton: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will suspend implementation of the decision of the Planning Inspectorate with regard to the land between Harris drive and Netherton way, Bootle, Merseyside until the Government's investigation has concluded, following the Lancet report on landfill sites of 26 January.

Sally Keeble: holding answer 30 January 2002
	It is not possible for the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions to suspend implementation of the planning appeal decision to allow the landfill of derelict land between Harris drive and Netherton way, Bootle. This case was transferred to an inspector and his decision is final unless it is successfully challenged in the High Court on a point of law. Two local residents have made such a challenge and the whole matter is now sub judice.

Council Rents

John Grogan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions 
	(1)  what real terms percentage increase in each year he predicts for formula rents for council tenants in York local authority until 2011;
	(2)  what real terms percentage increase in each year he predicts for formula rents for council tenants in Selby local authority until 2011.

Sally Keeble: The underlying rate of increase of formula rents will be the same for all local authorities. In 2002–03, we predict that the average rate of increase in real terms for formula rents for council tenants will be 1 per cent. Taking into account the policy that registered social landlord rents increases should be limited to RPI plus ½ per cent. a year, it is likely that local authority formula rents will have to rise by an average of about 1½ per cent. a year in real terms over the next 10 years to achieve Ministers' intention that similar rents should be charged for similar council and housing association properties by 2012. This is about half the average rate of council rent increases over the last 10 years.
	However, the precise path of social rents over the next 10 years will depend, among other things, on the outcomes of future spending reviews and the decisions taken by individual landlords who retain responsibility for rent setting.

Rail Passengers (Woodlesford)

Colin Challen: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if the new train operating franchise for trains operating on the Castleford to Leeds line will provide for sufficient capacity to allow passengers to and from Woodlesford to travel in comfort.

John Spellar: The terms of extension of Arriva Train Northern's franchise to February 2003 included a commitment to procure 18 additional vehicles. On expiry this franchise will be replaced by two new franchises, Northern and TransPennine Express. The Strategic Rail Authority will be expecting to secure further improvements in capacity and new rolling stock in these franchise negotiations.

Rail Services

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, pursuant to his answer of 19 December 2001, Official Report, columns 532–33W, on targets for improving the reliability of train services, what enforcement actions can be taken upon train operating companies if they fail to meet targets; upon which train operating companies enforcement action has been taken as a result of a failure to meet performance targets; and what the dates and the nature of the enforcement were.

John Spellar: Franchise agreements provide for a special call-in meeting where performance in any four- week period falls below the pre-set thresholds. Call-in meetings are formal and give the Strategic Rail Authority the chance to investigate with the operator the causes or the problem and remedial measures. Three call-ins in three years may be deemed a breach of the franchise agreement. Particularly poor performance in a period can lead straight to a breach, or, in extreme circumstances, to default upon which the authority can terminate the agreement. Enforcement action under section 55 of the Railways Act is available where breaches occur. The authority's annual reports, copies of which are in the Library of the House, list the breaches of franchise agreements registered in the year and the action taken.

Housing (Wandsworth)

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will take steps to agree with the London borough of Wandsworth that in all housing developments taking place within the borough there will be an agreed percentage of affordable housing built for local people.

Sally Keeble: We have made our views known to the London borough of Wandsworth on this matter for some time and have objected to the absence of an adequate affordable housing policy in the current unitary development plan review. Where schemes have been drawn to our attention we have issued Article 14 "holding" directions, to give us time to consider whether insufficient regard has been had to affordable housing needs, and we will continue to do this. In at least one of four recent schemes, the applicant has revised the scheme to include a percentage (25 per cent.) of affordable housing. We are monitoring closely the other three schemes to see if there is a case for calling them in for public inquiry.

Rail Safety

Huw Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what assessment he has undertaken of the need for safety barriers on roads adjacent to railway embankments.

John Spellar: General guidance on the provision and location of safety barriers is centrally reviewed in the light of accident statistics and the safety performance of the road network. A special review was carried out after the incident at Selby of nearside safety barriers. It is the responsibility of the highway authority regularly to review the safety of the road network in general and at specific locations such as roads adjacent to railways.

Council Tax

Mark Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many homes in (a) the City of Westminster and (b) the City of London were valued in each of the council tax bands in 1991; and if he will estimate the numbers that would be in each band based on current market valuations.

Alan Whitehead: Ever since the introduction of the council tax in 1993, dwellings have been allocated to council tax bands on the basis of their estimated values as at 1 April 1991. The following table gives figures for the City of Westminster and the City of London, as used for the first and most recent years of operation of the council tax. There are likely to have been several reasons for the changes between 1992 and 2001. These include the demolition or construction of dwellings, movements to lower bands as a result of successful appeals, the splitting or merging of dwellings, and the conversion of domestic dwellings into non-domestic properties, and vice versa.
	
		Valuation for council tax purposes as at 1 April 1991
		
			   Number as at:  
			 Band December 1992 16 October 2001 
		
		
			  City of Westminster 
			 A 1,161 1,486 
			 B 2,845 6,043 
			 C 12,426 15,364 
			 D 20,160 12,249 
			 E 20,370 20,292 
			 F 15,436 14,891 
			 G 20,494 20,033 
			 H 13,829 13,214 
			  
			 Total 106,721 112,572 
			
			  City of London 
			 A 0 9 
			 B 119 238 
			 C 207 629 
			 D 518 734 
			 E 1,245 1,747 
			 F 323 835 
			 G 507 794 
			 H 66 91 
			  
			 Total 2,985 5,077 
		
	
	No estimate is available of the number of homes that would be in each council tax band based on current market valuations.

Council Tax

Mark Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will estimate for (a) the City of Westminster and (b) the City of London the change in council tax yield if domestic properties were assigned council tax properties on the basis of current market value rather than 1991 values.

Alan Whitehead: We have no information on which to make an accurate estimation of the change in council tax yield should domestic properties in Westminster and the City of London be re-valued at current market prices.

Skateboarding

Matthew Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will list the councils that have by-laws which restrict the use of skateboards in (a) town or city centres and (b) other areas; if he will list the councils that have skateboard parks; and how many prosecutions have taken place of skateboarders by local councils.

Alan Whitehead: The information requested is not held centrally.

Baldock Bypass

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will make a statement on progress on the construction and funding of the Baldock bypass.

Sally Keeble: holding answer 1 February 2002
	The Baldock bypass was originally proposed by Hertfordshire county council to be funded through the private finance initiative. However, in re-evaluating the scheme Hertfordshire decided that conventional funding would be the best method of procurement and agreed to provide a revised estimate of costs involved.
	In order to ensure the most cost effective method of procurement and value for money for public resources we are currently discussing with Hertfordshire the details of the funding package for the scheme. We hope to be able to reach agreement on this in the very near future.

Departmental Expenditure

Elfyn Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will list his Department's total expenditure by month in each financial year since 1997–98.

Alan Whitehead: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my hon. Friend the Economic Secretary to the Treasury on 4 February 2002, Official Report, column 692W.

Departmental Retirement Ages

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will list the retirement ages that apply to the employees of his Department and its agencies, including how many and which categories of employees are affected by each; and if he will make a statement on his Department's policy on flexible retirement.

Alan Whitehead: Following the Performance and Innovation Unit report on active ageing, "Winning the Generation Game", DTLR is currently considering its retirement policy. Information on the current retirement ages for my Department and for the executive agencies are as follows:
	Grades listed at 1 (5,600 to 5,650 members of staff)—normal retirement age of 65.
	Bands 3 up to 7 (and equivalents) and those not covered by the previous Grades (ie EO, HEO, SEO, G7, G6 and equivalents) (11,520 to 11,600 members of staff)—normal retirement age of 60.
	Senior Civil Servants (195 to 215 members of staff)—normal retirement age of 60.
	There are the following exceptions:
	Subject to the terms and conditions when they joined DTLR, there is a "short-service concession" for most non-senior civil servants in Bands 3 and above with less than 20 years accumulated service to continue to work until they reach 20 years or age 65, whichever is the earlier. This is not available to Air Accident Inspectors, or those who became Crown employees working in the former Department of Transport after 31 March 1997.
	The Department may also invite staff to stay beyond the normal retirement age but not beyond age 70. Variations within the agencies
	The following executive agencies have these variations:
	Driving Standards Agency: Senior Driving Examiners and Supervising Driving Examiners have a normal retirement age of 63 (circa 300 staff); at present, to stay until 65 they would have to revert to Driving Examiners (circa 600 staff).
	The Fire Service College: Industrial staff have a retirement age of 65 (30 staff).
	The Planning Inspectorate: Planning Inspectors re-employed on flexible short-term contracts up to a maximum age of 65 (30 staff).
	The QEII Conference Centre: Normal retirement age of 60 for all staff (49 staff).
	The Rent Service: Those staff transferred under TUPE protection from their local Government employer have remained within the Local Government Pension Scheme. They may retire at age 65, although the scheme does allow them to retire at 60 should they so wish.
	Vehicle Inspectorate: Industrial employees Band 1 (Tester/Handy Person) in post by 1 May 1994 and over 50 can remain until 65. In other cases the retirement age is 60, with the exception of a short service concession for Band 1 Testers and Band 2 A VEs provided they were in post prior to 31 March 1997 (169 staff). Flexible retirement
	Offers of compulsory or flexible early retirement. or approved early retirement, are made at management discretion and depend on the operational needs of the Department.
	1 Notes:
	Crown employees who worked in the former Department of the Environment
	Administrative Assistant
	Administrative Officer
	Assistant Scientific Officer
	Chief Typing Manager
	Communication Officer
	Communication Officer II
	Communication Officer III
	Communication Officer IV
	Personal Secretary
	Process and General Supervisory Grades
	Senior Personal Secretary
	Superintendent and Deputy Superintendent Custody Guards
	Support Manager I
	Support Manager II
	Support Manager III
	Support Grade I
	Support Grade II
	Support Grade IIA
	Technical Grade 1 and 2
	Trainee Typist
	Typing Manager
	Typist
	Crown employees who worked in the former Department of Transport
	Administrative Assistant
	Administrative Officer
	Assistant Scientific Officer
	Chief Typing Manager
	Civil Engineer (SPTO and below)
	Personal Secretary
	Process and General Supervisory Grade D
	Process and General Supervisory Grade E
	Senior Personal Secretary
	SGB2 (Cleaner—less than 10 hours weekly)
	Stores Officer Grade D
	Support Grade 1
	Support Grade 2
	Support Grade 2A
	Support Manager 1
	Support Manager 2
	Support Manager 3
	Teleprinter operator
	Typing Manager
	Typist and Trainee Typist

Chancellor of the Exchequer

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will provide details of the subjects discussed at meetings with the Chancellor of the Exchequer over the weekend of 26 and 27 January; and what outcomes emerged from such discussions.

Stephen Byers: Information about any such discussion is exempt from disclosure under Section 2 Part II of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.

A36

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will make a statement on the plans he has for detrunking the A36 through west Wellow.

John Spellar: The Secretary of State confirmed in December 2000 that the A36/A46 route was to remain non-core, and would be detrunked in due course. Negotiations on detrunking between the Highways Agency and the local highway authorities commenced early in 2001. However, the South West Regional Assembly placed a holding objection to detrunking, pending the outcome of a further study into the management of the route and the traffic problems in Bath. This study, entitled the "Bristol/Bath to South Coast Study" is to be commissioned shortly, and is due to report at the end of 2002. Detrunking negotiations are therefore likely to be on hold until early 2003.

Railtrack

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, pursuant to his answer of 30 January 2002, Official Report, column 320W, ref 30241, from which budget within the SRA these costs are being drawn; if these funds are directly or indirectly provided (a) in part or (b) in total by public funds and on what legal basis the SRA is financing the bid costs.

John Spellar: holding answer 4 February 2002
	The costs are being met by the SRA through its existing public funds. The SRA is exercising its functions in accordance with its statutory duties to secure the development of the railway network and to promote its use and will ensure a viable bid is put to the administrator.

M6

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what his plans are for widening the M6 motorway; and if he will make a statement.

John Spellar: The Government have set up a multi-modal study to consider the transport issues of the M6 corridor. The Steering Group for the study has presented the outline recommendations to the Regional Planning Bodies for the West Midlands and North West Regions, who will consider them as part of the Regional Planning Guidance and their Regional Transport Strategy. We expect the Regional Planning Bodies to submit their recommendations to the Minister in the spring. The Secretary of State will make a statement after this date.

Liquefied Petroleum Gas

Gwyn Prosser: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what plans he has to extend the eligibility for transport action PowerShift grants for converting cars over five years old to use LPG.

John Spellar: Following the changes we announced last year on the future shape of the PowerShift programme, grants towards the cost of conversion to LPG have been made available for vehicles up to five years old for which quality LPG conversions are available. We have no plans to extend grants to cars over five years old, both because they provide fewer years of environmental benefits, and because the emissions improvements from gas conversions of older vehicles tend to be less certain.

Inner-City Regeneration

John Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what steps he is taking to encourage regeneration in inner city areas.

Sally Keeble: Deprivation is so ingrained in some inner city areas that only long-term regeneration programmes rooted in the needs and aspirations of local people, can make a significant impact on these areas.
	A New Commitment to Neighbourhood Renewal National Strategy Action Plan which was launched by the Prime Minister in January 2001 recognises this. The national strategy is a new long-term initiative which aims to deliver neighbourhood renewal—the process of delivering real change to England's most deprived areas. The Government's vision is reflected in its goal: to narrow the gap between deprived neighbourhoods and the rest, so that within 10 to 20 years, no one should be seriously disadvantaged by where they live. It aims to deliver economic prosperity, safe communities, high quality schools, decent housing, and better health to the poorest parts of the country.
	This approach will focus main Government programmes explicitly on deprived areas, many of which are located in inner city areas, and will require local people and public and private sectors to work in partnership. The strategy is being spearheaded by the Neighbourhood Renewal Unit, a cross-cutting unit based in DTLR and staffed by officials from across Whitehall and the public sector, with secondees from the private and voluntary sectors.
	In addition, the regional development agencies are providing support to deprived urban areas through the Single Regeneration Budget and physical regeneration programmes. In April 2002, the RDA's new single programme will include working with LSPs and other stakeholders to tackle poverty and social exclusion through promoting economic development in the most deprived areas.

Concessionary Travel Schemes

Phyllis Starkey: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many local authorities in England and Wales provide concessionary travel schemes for public transport for (a) pensioners, (b) the blind, (c) the disabled, (d) children aged under 16 years and (e) 16 to 18-year-olds in full-time education.

Sally Keeble: The Transport Act 2000 requires that from 1 June 2001 all local authorities provide their resident pensioners, blind and disabled people with at least half-fares on local buses. Local authorities suing their discretionary powers may also provide concessionary travel for children aged under 16 years, and for 16 to 18-year-olds in full-time education.

Marine Pollution

Simon Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will make it his policy to introduce a statutory duty on coastal local authorities to plan for and undertake shoreline clean-ups following marine pollution incidents; and if he will make a statement.

John Spellar: This is a subject which my Department has addressed in the context of the Cabinet Office's review of "The Future of Emergency Planning in England and Wales". One of the proposals for consideration under that review is that existing emergency planning legislation be replaced with a new statutory duty for emergency planning. The result of the review is awaited.

Marine Pollution

Simon Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what representations he has received from (a) local government associations and (b) individual local authorities concerning the introduction of a statutory duty on coastal local authorities to undertake shoreline clean-ups following marine pollution incidents.

John Spellar: Since the beginning of 1998, my Department has received representations arguing for the introduction of a statutory duty on coastal local authorities to plan for or undertake shoreline clean-ups following marine pollution incidents from: (a) the Local Government Association, the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities and KIMO (Kommunenes Internasjonale Milj organisasjon); and (b) Aberdeenshire council, Ceredigion county council, Devon county council, Dumfries and Galloway council, Dundee city council, Fife council, Pembrokeshire county council, Purbeck district council, Shetland Islands council, South Ayrshire council and the Tyne and Wear Emergency Planning Unit.

Marine Pollution

Simon Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what assessment he has made of the effect on local authorities of (a) the recommendations of the "Safer Ships, Cleaner Seas" report of 1995 and (b) the Sea Empress incident in West Wales in 1996.

John Spellar: The Government's action to address the recommendations of Lord Donaldson's 1994 report "Safer Ships, Cleaner Seas" following the sinking of the oil tanker Braer off Shetland in 1993, and the further reviews following the grounding of the Sea Empress on rocks in the entrance to Milford Haven in 1996 (the report of the Sea Empress Environmental Evaluation Committee, and the report of Lord Donaldson's Review of Salvage and Intervention and their Command and Control) has necessarily involved consideration of the role of, and impacts on, local authorities. This process has culminated, after a wide-ranging review which included local authorities and local authority associations, in the publication in February 2000 of the UK's revised "National Contingency Plan for Marine Pollution from Shipping and Offshore Installations", which sets out how the relevant agencies and authorities in the UK will respond to such incidents.

Emergency Planning

Simon Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will publish his Department's contribution to the Cabinet Office's review of the future of emergency planning.

John Spellar: I am advised that copies of all the responses to the Emergency Planning Review will be placed in the House of Commons Library soon, and that a summary of the responses to the Emergency Planning Review will be put on the Cabinet Office website within the same time scale. There are no plans to publish my Department's response separately.

Emergency Planning

Simon Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how much funding has been awarded by central Government to local authorities to cover the expense of (a) preparing plans, (b) training staff and (c) engaging in multi-agency exercises to promote the integrated emergency management approach advocated by central Government.

Christopher Leslie: I have been asked to reply.
	I informed the House on 23 January 2002, Official Report, column 891W, that, subject to the Civil Defence (Grant) Bill completing its passage through Parliament, the Government will maintain the total level of grant at this year's level, currently estimated at some £18.6 million. A high proportion of this year's grant is used by local authorities to meet the costs of preparing plans, training staff and engaging in exercises.

Benefit Fraud

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how much each local authority has spent on combating benefit fraud in each financial year since 1997.

Alan Whitehead: The information requested is not available centrally.

IT Contracts

Richard Younger-Ross: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what has been the total expenditure of his Department on IT systems and support in each year from May 1997 to date; how many IT contracts have been let in each of those years; of the other main contracting party in each of those contracts, how many have been (a) companies whose registered office is in (i) England and Wales, (ii) Scotland, and (iii) Northern Ireland and (b) foreign companies; and what are the names of the companies falling within category (a).

Alan Whitehead: The information requested is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Deprivation Indices

Peter Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will make a statement on the means used by his Department to determine relative deprivation.

Sally Keeble: holding answer 5 February 2002
	The Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions uses the Indices of Deprivation 2000 (ID 2000) as a means of determining how multiply deprived an area is, relative to other areas in England.
	The Indices of Deprivation 2000 is made up of:
	Six domain indices at ward level (Income, Employment, Health, Education, Housing and Geographical Access to Services),
	An overall ward level Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD 2000).
	A supplementary Child Poverty Index at ward level, which gives the percentage of children living in households that claim means tested benefits.
	Six summaries at local authority level of the overall IMD 2000, which allow all 354 local authority districts to be ranked according to each measure. These summaries take account of the different patterns of deprivation found in different areas.
	Each ward in England is ranked according to how multiply deprived it is, with the most deprived ward being assigned a rank of one and the least deprived a rank of 8,414, for presentation. The ranks show how a ward compares to all the other wards in the country.
	The IMD 2000 is constructed from 33 indicators using the most robust and up-to-date information available to describe deprivation at ward level. This includes information from sources such as Department of Social Security benefits data and University and College Admissions Service data. The indicators were chosen after wide consultation with a number of interested parties including central Government, local government, academics and practitioners.
	The Index is based on the premise that multiple deprivation is made up of separate dimensions or 'domains' of deprivation. These domains reflect different aspects of deprivation. However, low income remains a central component of the working definition of multiple deprivation for the ID 2000.

CHURCH COMMISSIONERS

Retired Clergy

Paul Burstow: To ask the hon. Member for Middlesbrough, representing the Church Commissioners 
	(1)  what was the average length of retirement for clergy who serve until the mandatory retirement in the last 10 years;
	(2)  what the average age of retirement of clergy was in the last 10 years; and what their average length of retirement was.

Stuart Bell: Clergy are generally obliged by law to retire no later than the age of 70. In practice, most do so at or fairly soon after the normal minimum pension age of 65.
	The following table gives data for clergy retirements and deaths in 2001 and in 1993—the earliest year for which details are readily obtainable—(1) for those who retired at or after age 65 and (2) for all cases including early retirements whether voluntarily or on grounds of ill-health. Complete statistics on which to base a 10-year average are not available.
	
		
			  Number of clergy retiring in year Average age at retirement Number of clergy pensioners who died in year Average age at death 
		
		
			 2001 at or after age 65 324 65.9 272 83.5 
			 2001 total including the above 542 63.4 327 82.0 
			 1993 at or after age 65/60 (M/W) 312 66.0 320 81.2 
			 1993 total including the above 470 64.0 372 80.9

HOUSE OF COMMONS

Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards

Marion Roe: To ask the hon. Member for Roxburgh and Berwickshire, representing the House of Commons Commission, what progress has been made by the House of Commons Commission in nominating a candidate for the post of Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards.

Archy Kirkwood: The Commission's report recommending to the House Mr. Philip Mawer, at present Secretary General of the General Synod of the Church of England and Secretary General of the Archbishops' Council, is being published at 3.30 p.m. today as House of Commons Paper 598. Copies are available from the Vote Office.

Statues

Patrick Cormack: To ask the Chairman of the Accommodation and Works Committee what arrangements have been made for the siting of the statue of the right hon. Baroness Thatcher commissioned by the Speaker's Advisory Committee on Works of Art.

Derek Conway: I am pleased to announce that in the short term the statue of the right hon. the Baroness Thatcher will be loaned to the Corporation of London for display at the Guildhall. Work is under way to identify a suitable site in the Guildhall complex.
	In the longer term, the statue will be displayed in the Palace of Westminster. Hon. Members will wish to know that Mr. Speaker has amended the "10-year rule", governing the display of representations of politicians in the main building of the Palace. A portrait, bust or statue of a politician other than a Prime Minister may be displayed once 10 years have passed after their death. A portrait, bust or statue of a former Prime Minister may now be displayed either once five years have passed after their death, or after the elapse of three Parliaments (with the proviso that this should be a minimum of 12 years) after they have left this House, whichever of these events comes first. There remain no restrictions on the siting of representations of living politicians in the outbuildings of the Palace.
	The Accommodation and Works Committee will make a recommendation to Mr. Speaker on the siting of the statue at an appropriate time.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Departmental Retirement Ages

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will list the retirement ages that apply to the employees of her Department and its agencies, including how many and which categories of employees are affected by each; and if she will make a statement on her Department's policy on flexible retirement.

Clare Short: All permanent and pensionable staff of DFID (1,596 staff) have a normal retirement age of 60. This is occasionally extended where there are particular business reasons to retain an officer's services beyond that age. In addition there are two groups of fixed term employees, Corps of Specialists (29 staff) and Technical Co-operation Officers (295 staff), who similarly have a normal retirement age of 60 which may occasionally be extended where there are particular business reasons. Staff appointed in country by DFID's offices (818 staff) are subject to a wide variety of retirement ages depending on local labour market practice or local legislation (the details are not currently held centrally and could not be produced except at disproportionate cost).
	My Department is currently reviewing its policy on flexible retirement.

Education for All

Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what representations she has made on identifying the financing gap for basic education within national Education for All plans.

Clare Short: DFID's "Children out of school paper" makes clear what action we believe should be taken on this. The main approach for delivering on the Dakar resource commitment should be through nationally owned poverty reduction strategy papers and similar planning frameworks. They should indicate how country plans to move towards the education Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) will be met, including through the release of HIPC (Heavily Indebted Poor Country) savings and with the assistance of the international community. So far as possible, this should be through sector-wide approaches and budget support.
	This approach should be underpinned by detailed analysis of the funding implications for achieving UPE and gender equality in schooling at a country level. The World bank is supporting work of this nature, including the tracking of expenditures from debt relief and identification of the scope for additional national resources within countries. Where necessary, assistance should be given to help countries undertake resource analysis of this type. The bank's findings will be submitted to Governors at their spring meeting in April. We are consulting with the bank about this work.

Humanitarian Assistance

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make a statement on the pilot initiative to create an international ombudsman for humanitarian assistance to improve the accountability of agencies in emergency situations.

Clare Short: The Humanitarian Accountability Project (HAP) is a two-year inter-agency project launched in 2001 in Geneva in response to concerns among humanitarian organisations about the lack of accountability to crisis-affected populations. The project will investigate and test the feasibility of creating an Ombudsman for the humanitarian sector and seek to strengthen accountability towards those affected by crisis situations. It will also facilitate improved performance within the humanitarian sector and is part of a wider effort within the international humanitarian sector to improve transparency, accountability and performance.
	Over the period April 2001 to January 2002 DFID will be providing funding of up to £500,000 in support of the project.

Global Health Fund

Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development 
	(1)  what steps she will take to ensure poor countries have sufficient say on where money is distributed within their countries from the global health fund;
	(2)  what progress has been made in ensuring that the global health fund will utilise countries' existing co-ordination mechanisms and experience.

Clare Short: An underlying principle of the global fund to fight AIDS, TB and malaria, for which the UK argued strongly, is that, except in narrowly defined circumstances, proposals must come from country co-ordination mechanisms which bring together developing country governments, private sector, non- government organisations and civil society. The fund will use existing country co-ordination mechanisms wherever possible. These mechanisms will be free to shape their applications around their own assessment and experience of in-country priorities. A final decision on which proposals to support will be made by the GFATM Board which has equal representation of donors and developing countries.

Global Health Fund

Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development 
	(1)  what work the global health fund will undertake to ensure necessary drugs will be more freely available in less developed countries to combat (a) HIV/AIDS, (b) tuberculosis and (c) malaria;
	(2)  what direct assistance the global health fund will provide for poverty reduction in Africa.

Clare Short: The global fund to fight AIDS, TB and Malaria has been established as a new public-private partnership to mobilise additional financial resources to make more and better drugs and commodities for the prevention and treatment of malaria, TB and HIV/AIDS available in the poorest countries, many of which are in Africa. It will also provide some associated health systems strengthening to ensure supplies are delivered safely, effectively and equitably. As the recent report of the Commission for Macro-economics and Health indicated 1 , such investment in health will play a vital role in the wider fight against poverty in Africa and elsewhere.
	1 Macro-economics and Health: Investing in Health for Economic Development, Jeffrey D. Sachs, 20 December 2001, World Health Organisation

Private Medical Insurance

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many employees in (a) her Department and (b) her Department's agencies and non-departmental public bodies have had private medical insurance provided for them in each year since 1997–98; what the total cost is; and if she will make a statement.

Clare Short: All DFID permanent and pensionable employees (as well as those in non-departmental public bodies) have access to the NHS (or while overseas, NHS standards of treatment on a cost reimbursement basis) and do not have private medical insurance provided for them. In certain countries overseas some of our locally appointed employees have access to private medical insurance (where it is normal practice in those countries) on a part contributory basis. However, no details are currently held centrally and they could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

SCOTLAND

Forth Rail Bridge

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, pursuant to the answer from the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport to the hon. Member for Linlithgow (Mr. Dalyell), of 21 January 2002, Official Report, columns 627–28W, on the Forth Rail Bridge, if she will make a statement on which Scottish transport issues are reserved matters.

George Foulkes: Schedule 5, Part II, Head E to the Scotland Act 1998 as amended by subsequent secondary legislation, sets out the matters of transport policy and direction within Scotland that are reserved to this Parliament. These responsibilities include the provision and regulation of rail services and rail transport security, with the exceptions set out.
	Scottish Ministers have responsibility for issuing Directions and Guidance to the Strategic Rail Authority (SRA) in relation to passenger rail services that both start and end in Scotland, within a national framework for franchising of the railways. Funding powers and public expenditure responsibility have been transferred to the Scottish Executive in respect of the ScotRail franchise.
	The Scottish Executive has the power to issue Directions and Guidance to the SRA in respect of ScotRail sleeper services, subject to the Directions and Guidance not impacting adversely on the SRA's costs outside Scotland or the operation of passenger or freight services generally. The Scottish Executive is able to issue non-binding guidance in respect of other cross border services (currently operated by GNER and Virgin).
	The Scottish Parliament has legislative competence to determine the rail responsibilities of Strathclyde Passenger Transport Authority and Executive and of any new such bodies which might be established in Scotland, subject to these falling within the overall framework of the new railway regulatory structure.
	The Scottish Parliament has legislative competence over grants for passenger rail services and the Scottish Executive has responsibility, under executive devolution, for the payment and administration of freight facilities grants and track access grants in Scotland, working within the rules of the schemes agreed at GB level for these subsidies.
	Scottish Ministers have responsibility for appointing the Chairman of the Rail Users' Consultative Committee for Scotland (RUCCS). The reports of the Rail Users' Consultative Committee for Scotland and a copy of the Central Rail Users Consultative Committee (CRUCC) are laid before the Scottish Parliament.

Private Medical Insurance

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many employees in (a) her Department and (b) her Department's agencies and non-departmental public bodies have had private medical insurance provided for them in each year since 1997–98; what the total cost is; and if she will make a statement.

Helen Liddell: The Scotland Office was established in its present form on 1 July 1999.
	No employees in my Department have had private medical insurance provided for them.

Air Traffic Control (Prestwick)

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what recent representations she has received from the National Air Traffic Services about the timetable for building the new Air Traffic Control Centre at Prestwick.

George Foulkes: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State and I met Mr. Richard Everitt, CEO of National Air Traffic Services Ltd. (NATS), on 16 January. Mr. Everitt confirmed that NATS remain committed to a two-centre strategy and to the construction of the new Scottish centre at Prestwick that will be brought into operation within a time scale of 2008–09. Mr. Everitt has agreed to keep me informed over the coming months about NATS plans for the implementation of the project at Prestwick.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Housing Benefit

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much money has been spent on housing benefit by local authorities in each of the last 15 years.

Malcolm Wicks: The available information is in the table.
	
		Housing benefit expenditure since 1988–99 -- £ million
		
			  Expenditure 
		
		
			 1988–89 3,774 
			 1989–90 4,300 
			 1990–91 5,147 
			 1991–92 6,494 
			 1992–93 7,877 
			 1993–94 9,210 
			 1994–95 10,104 
			 1995–96 10,876 
			 1996–97 11,380 
			 1997–98 11,176 
			 1998–99 11,068 
			 1999–2000 11,177 
			 2000–01 11,172 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Figures are rounded to the nearest £ million and are consistent with, and underlie, the forecasts published in the Chancellor's pre-Budget report, November 2001.
	2. The figure for 2000–01 is estimated. All other figures are actual annual expenditure but are subject to change as local authority activity is fully audited.
	3. Information is not available for years prior to the introduction of the current housing benefit scheme in April 1988.
	Source:
	Annual subsidy returns by local authorities to Department for Work and Pensions; Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions; and National Assembly for Wales.

Housing Benefit

Robert Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the expenditure was, inclusive of outturn or estimated outturn expenditure, on (a) housing benefit rent rebates, and (b) housing benefit rent allowances for (i) housing association tenants and (ii) private tenants in each year from 1992–93 to 2000–01.

Malcolm Wicks: The available information is in the table.
	
		Housing benefit expenditure -- £ million
		
			Rent allowance  
			  Rent rebates Registered social landlord tenants Private tenants Total 
		
		
			 1992–93 4,593 — — 3,284 
			 1993–94 5,019 — — 4,195 
			 1994–95 5,228 1,309 3,567 4,876 
			 1995–96 5,430 1,641 3,806 5,446 
			 1996–97 5,569 1,991 3,820 5,810 
			 1997–98 5,495 2,208 3,473 5,681 
			 1998–99 5,403 2,427 3,238 5,665 
			 1999–2000 5,362 2,725 3,090 5,815 
			 2000–01 5,319 2,988 2,865 5,853 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Figures are rounded to the nearest £ million and are consistent with, and underlie, the forecasts published in the Chancellor's pre-Budget report, November 2001.
	2. Totals may not sum due to rounding.
	3. The figures for 2000–01 are estimated. All other figures are actual annual expenditure but are subject to change as local authority activity is fully audited.
	4. The split of total rent allowance expenditure between tenants of social landlords and those of private landlords has been estimated.
	5. No estimate is available for the split in rent allowance paid prior to 1994–95.
	6. Figures for rent allowance paid to social landlord tenants includes housing association and non-housing association accommodation. Separate data on rent allowance paid to housing association tenants only are not collected.
	Source:
	Annual subsidy returns by local authorities to Department for Work and Pensions; Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions; and National Assembly for Wales.

Housing Benefit

Robert Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the budgeted expenditure is for (a) housing benefit rent rebates, and (b) housing benefit rent allowances for (i) housing association tenants only, and (ii) private tenants in each year from 2001–02 to 2003–04.

Malcolm Wicks: The available information is in the table.
	
		Planned housing benefit expenditure (£ million)
		
			   Rent allowance  
			 Year Rent rebates Registered social landlord tenants Private tenants 
		
		
			 2001–02 5,361 3,385 2,932 
			 2002–03 5,275 3,827 3,086 
			 2003–04 5,048 4,477 3,248 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Figures are rounded to the nearest £ million and are consistent with, and underlie the forecasts published in the Chancellor's pre-Budget report, November 2001.
	2. Figures for rent allowance paid to social landlord tenants include housing association and non-housing association accommodation. Separate data on rent allowance paid to housing association tenants only are not collected.
	Source:
	Estimated outturn expenditure calculated using actual and forecast caseload information.

Housing Benefit

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to his answer of 19 December 2001, Official Report, column 376W, on housing benefit, what the estimated expenditure on the housing benefit under occupation pilot is expected to be in 2001–02.

Malcolm Wicks: For 2001–02 the estimated expenditure on the under-occupation pilot is £255,000.

Council Tax Benefit Restriction Scheme

Iain Coleman: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the savings to his Department in 2001–02 as a consequence of the council tax benefit restriction scheme.

Malcolm Wicks: It is estimated that the council tax benefit restrictions for people living in properties in Bands F, G and H will reduce spending on council tax benefit by £7 million in 2001–02.
	Since 2 July 2001, local authorities have been able to make discretionary housing payments to those people entitled to housing benefit and council tax benefit who require additional financial assistance with their rent or council tax. This includes those whose council tax benefit has been restricted. These payments are at the discretion of the local authority and subject to an annual cash limit.

Disability Rights Commission

Tom Clarke: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the impact of the Disability Rights Commission on the work of Government Departments.

Maria Eagle: The Disability Rights Commission is working closely with a range of Government Departments and has made a positive contribution in a number of areas. For example, it has prepared statutory Codes of Practice for my Department to support the October 2004 duties under Part III of the Disability Discrimination Act and for the Department for Education and Skills on the Special Educational Needs and Disability Act. It has responded to a range of government consultation exercises including on the future of social care and charging, the operation of the Human Rights Act, transport reform and disputes resolution. The commission has also been working extensively with the National Assembly for Wales and the Scottish Executive on a range of cross-cutting disability issues of particular relevance to those countries.

Appeals Service

Archy Kirkwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what additional (a) staff and (b) money have been allocated to the Appeals Service in anticipation of the child support reforms.

Maria Eagle: Additional funding of £1.7 million has been allocated for 2002–03. This sum includes the staffing costs for 50 additional staff. A further £398,000 has been allocated to implement the necessary changes to IT procedures, and develop new training material for staff and panel members, resulting from the new child support legislation.

CSA

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many CSA cases from (a) the Angus constituency and (b) Scotland have been considered by the Independent Case Examiner in each year since the creation of the post.

Malcolm Wicks: The information is in the table.
	
		Details of the number of cases received by the Office of the Independent Case Examiner
		
			  Complaints received Accepted for investigation 
		
		
			 Angus constituency   
			 1997–98 4 2 
			 1998–99 1 0 
			 1999–2000 1 0 
			 2000–01 1 1 
			 2001–02(17) 1 1 
			
			 Scotland   
			 1997–98 70 31 
			 1998–99 102 46 
			 1999–2000 86 34 
			 2000–01 108 57 
			 2001–02(17) 80 42 
		
	
	(17) Position as at 28 January 2002
	Note:
	Figures subject to a small amount of error

CSA

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what is the average time taken by the Independent Case Examiner to issue a determination in cases referred to him from (a) Angus and (b) Scotland in each year since the creation of the post.

Malcolm Wicks: The information is in the table.
	
		Details of the average time taken by the Office of the Independent Case Examiner to clear cases accepted for investigation
		
			  Complaints accepted for investigation Average clearance time (weeks) 
		
		
			 Angus constituency   
			 1997–98 2 20 
			 1998–99 0 — 
			 1999–2000 0 — 
			 2000–01 1 36 
			 2001–02(18) 1 21 
			
			 Scotland   
			 1997–98 31 29 
			 1998–99 46 41 
			 1999–2000 34 38 
			 2000–01(18) 57 (46 completed) 33 
			 2001–02(18) 42 (12 completed) 17 
		
	
	(18) Position as at 28 January 2002
	Note:
	Figures subject to a small amount of error

Private Medical Insurance

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many employees in (a) his Department and (b) his Department's agencies and non-departmental public bodies have had private medical insurance provided for them in each year since 1997–98; what the total cost is; and if he will make a statement.

Ian McCartney: The Department of Work and Pensions has no policy which would allow employees to have medical insurance provided for them. Therefore, no employee has had medical insurance provided for them since 1997 to date.

Personal Capability Assessments

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many successful appeals there have been in each of the last four years against personal capability assessments involving people whose medical condition fluctuates or varies in severity; and what proportion this represents of the total number of successful appeals.

Nick Brown: It was not possible to obtain specific information detailing cases where an appellant's medical condition fluctuates or varies in severity.

Pensions Schemes Registry

Tim Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement on the work of the Pensions Schemes Registry in tracing lost pensions contributions.

Ian McCartney: The Pension Schemes Registry helps people trace the contributions they have paid to occupational or personal pension schemes that they have lost touch with. The registry does this by providing—at no cost—the current name and address of the relevant pension scheme. The person concerned can then contact the scheme to find out what pension they may have.
	In 2000–01 the registry received over 21,000 tracing requests and found a contact name and address in 92 per cent. of cases, responding to 100 per cent. of requests within four days.

State Second Pension

Tim Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if the decision by an employer whether to contract-out from the state second pension scheme is (a) a matter of negotiation between the parties involved in that employment and (b) is subject to fiduciary duties to maximise benefit to employees.

Ian McCartney: The decision on whether or not an employer wishes to set up an occupational pension scheme through which his employees may contract out of the state second pension, is entirely a matter for the employer. Any subsequent change in the contracting-out status of the scheme would require a change to the scheme rules. Such a change could only be made if an actuary certified to the trustees that, in his opinion, the change would not adversely affect any member of the scheme, without his or her consent, in respect of his or her entitlement.

Cold Weather Payments

Annabelle Ewing: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many cold weather payments have been triggered this winter as a result of low temperatures, broken down by (a) weather station and (b) nation and region of the United Kingdom.

Malcolm Wicks: pursuant to his reply, 21 January 2002, c. 631–32W; holding answer 11 January 2002
	Cold weather payments are a key part of our strategy to tackle fuel poverty. They provide extra help towards heating costs for the poorest and most vulnerable members of our society in periods of exceptionally cold weather. They are paid to pensioners receiving the minimum income guarantee, and to people receiving income support or income-based jobseeker's allowance who have children under the age of five or who have a premium for disability or long term sickness.
	The payments are made automatically and are triggered when the average temperature is recorded as, or forecast to be, 0 degrees centigrade or below over seven consecutive days at the weather station linked to the customer's postcode. So far this year we estimate that payments to the value of almost £16.8 million have been triggered. Available information on the breakdown of the payments is in the tables.
	
		Estimated number and value of cold weather payments triggered by weather station
		
			 Weather station Estimated number of payments triggered from 1 November 2001 to 14 January 2002 Estimated value of payments triggered (£) 
		
		
			 Andrewsfield 39,790 338,215.00 
			 Aviemore 3,099 26,341.50 
			 Bedford 60,529 514,496.50 
			 Bingley 86,283 733,405.50 
			 Bishopton 178,525 1,517,462.50 
			 Boltshope Park 9,370 79,645.00 
			 Boulmer 10,793 91,740.50 
			 Bracknell 53,193 452,140.50 
			 Braemar 228 1,938 
			 Brize Norton 22,139 188,181.50 
			 Carlisle 9,896 84,116.00 
			 Cassley 208 1,768.00 
			 Coleshill 249,130 2,117,605.00 
			 Coltishall 34,663 294,635.50 
			 Dumfries 5,128 43,588.00 
			 Dyce 22,024 187,204.00 
			 Edinburgh Gogarbank 65,607 557,659.50 
			 Eskdalemuir 8,712 74,052 
			 Fylingdales 25,142 213,707.00 
			 Great Malvern 37,578 319,413.00 
			 Lake Vyrnwy 1,398 11,883.00 
			 Leeds 143,964 1,223,694.00 
			 Lerwick 829 7,046.50 
			 Leuchars 32,244 274,074.00 
			 Linton on Ouse 62,637 532,414.50 
			 Loch Glascarnoch 525 4,462.50 
			 Lyneham 24,040 204,340.00 
			 Marham 14,914 126,769.00 
			 Newcastle 122,657 1,042,584.50 
			 Nottingham 147,861 1,256,818.50 
			 Redhill 32,551 276,683.50 
			 Ringway 199,291 1,693,973.50 
			 Salsburgh 12,027 102,229.50 
			 Sennybridge 47,119 400,511.50 
			 Shawbury 48,288 410,448.00 
			 Tulloch Bridge 1,931 16,413.50 
			 Waddington 95,223 809,395.50 
			 Wattisham 35,582 302,447.00 
			 Wick Airport 1,956 16,626.00 
			 Wittering 30,163 256,385.50 
			  
			 Total 1,977,237 16,806,514.50 
		
	
	
		Estimated number and value of cold weather payments triggered by country
		
			 Country Estimated number of payments triggered from 1 November 2001 to 14 January 2002 Estimated value of payments triggered (£) 
		
		
			 England 1,595,677 13,563,254.50 
			 Scotland 333,043 2,830,865.50 
			 Wales 48,517 412,394.50 
			  
			 Total 1,977,237 16,806,514.50 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Figures are not available by Government office region.
	2. Those weather stations where cold weather payments have not been triggered are excluded from the tables.
	3. Cold weather payments are payable for periods of cold weather between 1 November and 31 March each winter.
	4. Social security matters in Northern Ireland are the responsibility of the Northern Ireland Assembly.
	5. The figures provided are estimates. The final number and value of actual payments made will be reconciled after 31 March 2002.
	Source:
	Estimates are based on a scan in November 2001 of income support and jobseeker's allowance live load linked to weather station postcodes.

LORD CHANCELLOR

EU Policy

George Howarth: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what recent meetings Ministers in his Department have held bilaterally on European union policy with representatives of other EU Governments.

Michael Wills: Baroness Scotland and I met Jose Maria Michavila, the State Secretary of the Ministry of Justice in Spain on 1 November 2001. Baroness Scotland also met Diogo Machado, the Portuguese Secretary of State for Justice, on 30 July 2001.
	The Lord Chancellor has not had any recent meetings with representatives of other EU Governments.

Crown Dependencies

George Howarth: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what his estimate is of the cost of his Department's responsibilities for the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands.

Michael Wills: The estimated costs incurred since my Department assumed responsibility in connection with the Crown Dependencies on 8 June 2001 are as follows:
	
		
			  £ 
		
		
			 Staff costs, including legal advice 240,428 
			 Visits by Ministers and senior officials 5,985 
			 Other (non-pay) running costs 213,369 
			  
			 Total costs 459,782

Law Commission

George Howarth: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department who (a) sits on and (b) appoints those who sit on the Law Commission; and what criteria are used to select those who sit on it.

Michael Wills: The Law Commission is an advisory non-departmental public body which is governed by the Law Commissions Act 1965. The 1965 Act requires the Lord Chancellor to appoint five Commissioners of which one is the Chairman. Currently the Chairman is Lord Justice Carnwath CVO, and the Commissioners are: Professor Hugh Beale; Judge Alan Wilkie QC; Professor Martin Partington and Mr. Stuart Bridge.
	The 1965 Act further requires that the Commissioners be chosen from those who are either a holder of judicial office, or a barrister, or a solicitor or a teacher of law in a university. The Lord Chancellor also considers the specialist skills, experience and expertise of prospective Commissioners against the requirements of the Commission's programme of work.

Church Issues

George Howarth: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many Church issues have been referred to him since taking office.

Michael Wills: The Lord Chancellor has made appointments to 77 livings and six canonries which are in his Patronage. Additionally he has been involved in 167 other Church appointments by virtue of the fact the Royal Warrants are addressed to him as Keeper of the Great Seal. The other main Church issue concerns the Report on Royal Peculiars chaired by Professor Averil Cameron which was submitted to the Lord Chancellor last year.

Council on Tribunals

George Howarth: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department, what functions the Council on Tribunals performs; and what its budget was in each year since 1992–93.

Rosie Winterton: The Council on Tribunals keeps under review, and reports on, the constitution and working of tribunals under its supervision, and where necessary considers and reports on the administrative procedures of statutory inquiries. The Council seeks to ensure, through the advice it gives, that tribunals and inquiries meet the needs of users through the provision of an open, fair, impartial, efficient, timely and accessible service.
	The budget of the Council in each year since 1992–93 has been as follows: 1992–93: £485,055; 1993–94: £568,970; 1994–95: £537,866; 1995–96: £547,682; 1996–97: £566,700; 1997–98: £575,401; 1998–99: £601,270; 1999–2000: £651,600; 2000–01: £681,719.

Council on Tribunals

George Howarth: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department, who (a) sits on and (b) appoints members of the Council on Tribunals; and what criteria are used to select those who sit on it.

Rosie Winterton: The information is as follows:
	(a) The current membership of the Council is as follows: Lord Newton of Braintree PC OBE (Chairman); Mr. John Elliot DKS (Chairman of the Scottish Committee of the Council); Mrs. Carolyn Berkeley JP; Mr. Michael Brown JP; Mr. John Eames; Mrs. Anne Galbraith; Mrs. Susan Howdle; Mr. Ian Irvine CA; Mr. Samuel Jones CBE DL; Mr. Stephen Mannion; Mr. Douglas Readings; Professor Genevra Richardson; Mr. Emrys Roberts; Mr. Sandy Russell CB; Mr. Patrick Waring and Mr. Michael Buckley (Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration).
	(b) Appointments to the Council are made jointly by the Lord Chancellor and the Scottish Ministers. The criteria for appointment to the Council depend upon the vacancy but all candidates will need to have proven communication skills, a record of effective committee work and some knowledge of tribunals and inquiries. Supplementary criteria will be needed for certain posts.

Public Guardianship Office

George Howarth: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what training she has arranged for staff at the Public Guardianship Office in dealing with the public in an efficient and courteous manner.

Rosie Winterton: The Public Guardianship Office recognises the need to train its staff to ensure efficient, effective and proactive customer service. All PGO staff have attended a one day training event in Customer Service and training in letter writing and telephone skills has been arranged for staff in Client Services. In addition, leadership and team building programme is under way, focusing on new ways of working and all staff have attended, or are due to attend, a one day diversity awareness session, helping them to recognise and appreciate the needs of the diverse society the PGO serves. Following the recent relocation to Archway Tower and changes to the way staff in the Client Service area work, a specialised call centre training session has been devised.

Performance Indicators

George Howarth: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what performance indicators she uses to monitor the performance of the (a) Legal Services Commission, (b) Law Commission, (c) Judge Advocate-General, (d) Public Guardianship Office and (e) CAFCASS.

Rosie Winterton: The information is as follows:
	(a) The Legal Services Commission's objectives are framed in the context of the Public Service Agreements (PSAs), the Lord Chancellor's Department's Service Delivery Agreements and the Lord Chancellor's Strategic Objectives. The Commission's Annual Concordat, signed by the Commission's Chair and the Lord Chancellor, establishes the key outputs and performance targets the Commission will deliver in order to meet its objectives, and sets milestones against which the Commission's progress is reviewed. The Commission publishes an annual report each year reporting on progress against targets in its corporate plan, which can be found in the Libraries of both Houses.
	(b) The Lord Chancellor has a statutory duty to approve the Law Commission's programme of work which sets out the terms of reference and the timetable for each individual project and the Law Commission's targets for its consolidation and statutory revision work. The Law Commission's programme of work, currently the 8th Programme, is laid before Parliament and published by the Stationary Office.
	(c) Performance indicators for the Office of the Judge Advocate-General are:
	"1. To ensure that we are able to provide a judge advocate to conduct hearings as requested to meet the demands of the Army, Air Force and Royal Marines. We aim to appoint the judge eight weeks before the hearing date.
	2. Monitor the military justice system so that wherever possible a fair and consistent approach is taken. Tender judicial advice to reviewing authorities in respect of findings and sentences of courts-martial and Standing Civilian Courts on the 29th day following trial or within three days of receipt of a petition.
	3. To provide information and documents from courts-martial files in response to inquires from the public or other interested parties.
	4. Contributing to the development of primary and secondary legislation affecting the Criminal Justice Systems of the Army and Royal Air Force.
	5. Monitoring the criminal justice system of the Army and Royal Air Force so as to ensure the efficient and proper working of it.
	6. Maintaining contact with foreign military lawyers, especially in Eastern Europe, attending foreign conferences and direct visits.
	7. Recruiting and training part-time Judge Advocates/Judicial Officers. Hold a one day training event for all judges."
	(d) The Public Guardianship Office's Key Performance Measures and Targets 2001–02 were announced to Parliament on 29 March 2001. Two additional key performance indicators were announced on 18 December 2001, Official Report, column 257W. A full list has today been placed in the House Libraries.
	(e) The Criminal Justice and Court Services Act 2000, the Lord Chancellor's Strategic Objectives and the Lord Chancellor's Department's Public Service Agreements provide the framework within which CAFCASS's Key Objectives are set out in its Framework Document, which is available in the House Libraries. Key Performance Indicators relating to these will be set out in CAFCASS's Corporate Plan for 2002–06. CAFCASS will also publish its first annual report in the summer.

Official Visits

George Howarth: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what official foreign visits his officials from the International Legal Service have undertaken since 1997; at what cost; and for what purpose.

Michael Wills: In the course of their everyday duties and consistent with the Government's active membership of the EU, those officials concerned with international trade in legal services, international legal policy and international legal relations attend meetings outside the United Kingdom, including regular and frequent meetings of European Union and Council of Europe working groups in Brussels and Strasbourg. Travel costs for the majority of these meetings are met from European Union and Council of Europe funds. Information is not held centrally in the form demanded, and it would be disproportionately expensive to provide it in that form.

International Legal Services

George Howarth: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what the caseload is of the international legal services section of his Department; and how many staff are employed (a) whole-time and (b) part-time on international legal services work.

Michael Wills: In the Lord Chancellor's Department there is one official working specifically on international trade in legal services and 15 officials employed across the wider field of international legal policy and international legal relations. Their work includes matters of policy advice and discussions and negotiation. The officials are involved in opening up the market in international legal services, which earn the UK significant sums of foreign earnings, in promoting the rule of law and human rights in emerging economies and democracies, and in the detailed formulation and negotiation of policy in respect of European Community initiatives. This very important work is not measurable in terms of a caseload.

Judicial Appointments

George Howarth: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many judicial appointments she has made since taking up office; what criteria are used to select people suitable for judicial appointments; and how many judicial appointees she has made who are (a) women and (b) from ethnic backgrounds.

Rosie Winterton: Drawing on information currently held on the judicial appointments database, we estimate that the Lord Chancellor has appointed or recommended for appointment a total of 15,703 judicial officers in the courts and tribunals, between 2 May 1997 and 31 January 2002. This figure includes full-time and part-time professional legal judicial officers and professional non-legal judicial officers (including first appointments and re-appointments), lay magistrates and General Commissioners of Income Tax. Of all these appointments, the database shows that 5,326 were women and 1,530 declared themselves as from minority ethnic backgrounds, with 2,953 appointments being of unknown ethnic origin.
	The criteria and personal qualities against which candidates for judicial office are assessed are as follows:
	Professional judicial appointment
	Criteria
	Legal knowledge and experience, intellectual and analytical ability, sound judgment, decisiveness, communication and listening skills, authority and case management skills.
	Personal qualities
	Integrity and independence, fairness and impartiality, understanding of people and society, maturity and sound temperament, courtesy and commitment, conscientiousness and diligence.
	Lay magistracy
	Personal qualities
	Good character, understanding and communication, social awareness, maturity and sound temperament, sound judgment, commitment and reliability.
	General Commissioners of Income Tax
	Personal qualities expected include:
	Good reputation, personal integrity, a manner which inspires confidence, the ability to identify and comprehend relevant facts reasonably quickly, the ability to think logically, ability to communicate effectively, the ability to advance views firmly but tactfully, combined with a readiness to listen to and take on board others' views, the ability to work with others, awareness of personal prejudices and readiness to put them aside, the ability to reach a decision reasonably quickly having weighed all relevant evidence and arguments, some experience, understanding or knowledge of life outside the candidate's own immediate circle of family and work.

Statutory Publications Office

George Howarth: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many staff from the Statutory Publications Office are located outside London.

Rosie Winterton: There are no staff from the Statutory Publications Office located outside London. All staff of the Statutory Publications Office are located within the Lord Chancellor's Department headquarters in Selborne House in central London.

Statutory Publications Office

George Howarth: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many staff are employed (a) whole-time and (b) part-time in the Statutory Publications Office.

Rosie Winterton: The total number of (a) whole- time staff employed by the Statutory Publications Office is 25. The total number of (b) part-time staff employed by the Statutory Publications Office is two.

Statutory Publications Office

George Howarth: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many publications were processed by the Statutory Publications Office in each year since 1992.

Rosie Winterton: Responsibility for all hard copy publications previously processed by the Statutory Publications Office was, with one exception, transferred on 1 April 1997 to Her Majesty's Stationery Office within the Cabinet Office. The exception related to the publication "Statutes in Force" (SIF) which contained the revised text of all in-force UK Acts and Measures. All revision work on SIF was suspended in September 1993 when the work had been revised to 1 February 1991. Work in relation to the issue of newly enacted Acts for inclusion in SIF continued until the end of 1999. Except as mentioned above, during the period mentioned in the question, the Statutory Publications Office has been concerned solely with the development of the Statute Law Database, a historical database of in-force statute law which represents the electronic successor to SIF.

Official Solicitor

George Howarth: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what official foreign visits the Official Solicitor has made since his appointment; and what was the purpose of such visits.

Rosie Winterton: The Official Solicitor has made one foreign visit. In April 2000 he attended and spoke as the sole representative for England and Wales at the 4th International Conference of Public Trustees and Public Guardians held in Singapore.

Official Solicitor

George Howarth: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many (a) whole-time and (b) part-time staff work in the Official Solicitor's office; and how many were employed (a) whole-time and (b) part-time when he took up his office.

Rosie Winterton: On 1 August 1999 there were 99 full-time staff and five part-time staff in the office of the Official Solicitor. On 1 April 2001 30 members of staff left the Office of the Official Solicitor for the newly established Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (CAFCASS), and on the same date 90 staff from the former Trust Division of the Public Trust Office transferred into the office of the Official Solicitor, which became the office of the Official Solicitor and Public Trustee. There are currently 154 full-time staff and nine part-time staff working in the combined office.

Official Solicitor

George Howarth: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what the case load has been for the Official Solicitor in each month since he took up his office.

Rosie Winterton: The Official Solicitor's records show that his active cases (in all areas of his then work) as at August 1999 numbered 3,921; as at December 2001 the active cases for the combined office of the Official Solicitor and Public Trustee numbered 5,647. Annual figures are published in the Official Solicitor's annual reports, which are available in the Library of the House. A monthly breakdown, if required, may be obtained from the Official Solicitor and Public Trustee's office.

Legal Aid

George Howarth: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many legal aid applications have been (a) granted and (b) refused in each year since 1992.

Rosie Winterton: The number of legal aid applications granted and refused was as follows:
	
		
			  Granted Refused 
		
		
			  Civil legal aid applications(19) 
			 1991–92 382,642 101,715 
			 1992–93 431,072 125,869 
			 1993–94 379,908 125,961 
			 1994–95 400,813 123,126 
			 1995–96 387,614 125,103 
			 1996–97 334,469 133,975 
			 1997–98 277,847 156,289 
			 1998–99 315,084 97,870 
			 1999–2000 277,336 65,477 
			 2000–01 174,017 52,087 
			
			  Criminal applications(20) 
			 1992(21) 144,938 7,638 
			 1993(21) 140,148 6,691 
			 1994(21) 150,784 6,343 
			 1995(21) 158,190 6,606 
			 1996(21) 150,863 7,502 
			 1997 543,549 49,013 
			 1998 506,124 42,903 
			 1999 596,861 45,339 
			 2000 585,704 31,608 
		
	
	(19) Financial year
	(20) Calendar year
	(21) Excludes applications granted or refused in the magistrates courts as these figures are not available prior to 1997.

Domestic Legal Services

George Howarth: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many staff employed on domestic legal services are located outside London; and in which locations.

Rosie Winterton: The Court Service has staff located throughout England and Wales, providing a wide range of services to court users, including family related work. We are unable to provide a breakdown of the number of staff working on family related work, although the total number of staff employed by the Lord Chancellor's Department, by region of the UK, was provided in an answer given to the hon. Member for North Tayside (Pete Wishart) on 15 October 2001, Official Report, column 1017W.

Community Legal Services

George Howarth: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many staff employed by her Department on community legal services are located in offices outside London; and in which locations.

Rosie Winterton: The Lord Chancellor's Department employs nobody outside London on community legal services. The Community Legal Service is delivered by the Legal Services Commission through the Community Legal Service Partnerships and contacted suppliers, and these include both lawyers in private practice and organisations in the not-for-profit sector.

Public Trustee Office

George Howarth: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many trusteeships the Public Trustee Office holds; and under what categories.

Rosie Winterton: The Public Trustee holds 1,472 trusteeships divided into the following categories:
	Executorships with continuing Trusts—647
	Will Trusts—265
	Settlement Trusts—445
	Statutory Trusts—17
	Supreme Court Declarations of Trust—44
	Declarations of Trust—45
	Custodian Trusts—5
	Miscellaneous Trusts—4.
	In addition, the Public Trustee is conducting 105 Executorships and 24 Pension and Institutional Funds.

Family Court Casework

Matthew Green: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what plans she has to ensure that magistrates courts continue to carry out the function of family courts.

Rosie Winterton: The Government are considering the future work of the magistrates courts, including family work, in the light of the recommendations in Sir Robin Auld's Report of his Review of the Criminal Courts of England and Wales. The Government will announce their conclusions on the report by way of a White Paper in the spring.

Departmental Retirement Ages

Steve Webb: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if he will list the retirement ages that apply to the employees of the Lord Chancellor's Department and its agencies, including how many and which categories of employees are affected by each; and if he will make a statement on his Department's policy on flexible retirement.

Rosie Winterton: The normal retirement ages for the Lord Chancellor's Department and its executive agencies are as follows.
	
		
			  Retirement age 
		
		
			 HEO equivalent and above(22) 60 
			 EO equivalent 62 
			 AO equivalent and below 65 
		
	
	(22) Including Senior Civil Service
	However, staff can stay on above the normal retirement ages at management discretion, subject to business needs.
	The table shows the numbers of staff affected.
	
		
			  Age of retirement  
			 Business area 65 62 60 Grand total 
		
		
			 Court service 6,774 2,083 1,591 10,448 
			 LCD HQ 248 263 759 1,270 
			 Public G'ship Office 165 50 107 322 
			  
			 Grand total 7,187 2,396 2,457 12,040 
		
	
	Flexible retirement policy
	Our Corporate Board will shortly be considering proposals to create greater flexibility in our retirement policy, in line with the recommendations set out in the Performance and Innovation report entitled "Winning the Generation Game". The new retirement policy will allow the retention of staff who are performing to the required standard who want to stay beyond 60; have the flexibility to keep staff on for key posts and open up choices for staff about the ages at which they may retire.

Private Medical Insurance

David Laws: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many employees in (a) her Department and (b) her Department's agencies and non-departmental public bodies have had private medical insurance provided for them in each year since 1997–98; what the total cost is; and if she will make a statement.

Rosie Winterton: In accordance with paragraph 7.17 of the Civil Service Management Code, the Lord Chancellor's Department, including its agencies and non-departmental public bodies, does not provide private medical insurance to any of its staff.

Legal Services Ombudsman

George Howarth: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many cases the Legal Services Ombudsman has (a) found in favour of, (b) declined to investigate and (c) rejected after investigation in each year since his office was established.

Rosie Winterton: The information requested is provided in the table.
	
		
			  1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 
		
		
			 Reports issued by the LSO containing recommendations/orders/ criticisms(23) 54 226 241 260 260 399 464 542 557 659 
			 Number of complaints which the LSO has declined to investigate(24) 122 106 107 157 135 156 117 157 107 77 
			 Number of cases where the LSO was satisfied with the professional body's investigation 116 535 339 579 781 989 1,055 1,116 965 1,019 
		
	
	(23) Reports may contain more than one recommendation
	(24) Figures relate to complaints received where the professional body has completed its investigation
	HEALTH

Private Health Care

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how (a) the extra accident and emergency nurses and (b) the elective operations to be placed in the private sector will be distributed, broken down by health authority.

John Hutton: We have set out a strategy for reducing long waits in accident and emergency departments. £40 million of a £118 million investment will be used to fund an additional 600 or more nursing posts in accident and emergency. Allocations for each accident and emergency department, of the distribution by health authority are set out in the table.
	
		
			 Health authority Extra A&E nurses 
		
		
			 Bradford 4 
			 Calderdale and Kirklees 6 
			 County Durham 20 
			 East Riding 2 
			 Gateshead and South Tyneside 4 
			 Leeds 16 
			 Newcastle and North Tyneside 2 
			 North Cumbria 4 
			 North Yorkshire 8 
			 Northumberland 4 
			 Sunderland 2 
			 Tees 6 
			 Wakefield 2 
			 Barnsley 2 
			 Doncaster 6 
			 Leicestershire 8 
			 Lincolnshire 6 
			 North Derbyshire 2 
			 North Nottinghamshire 2 
			 Nottingham 8 
			 Rotherham 2 
			 Sheffield 2 
			 South Derbyshire 8 
			 South Humber 4 
			 Birmingham 20 
			 Coventry 2 
			 Dudley 2 
			 Herefordshire 2 
			 North Staffordshire 2 
			 Sandwell 2 
			 Shropshire 4 
			 South Staffordshire 4 
			 Walsall 2 
			 Warwickshire 4 
			 Wolverhampton 2 
			 Worcestershire 4 
			 Bury and Rochdale 10 
			 East Lancashire 4 
			 Liverpool 8 
			 Manchester 12 
			 Morecambe Bay 4 
			 North Cheshire 2 
			 North West Lancashire 10 
			 Salford and Trafford 4 
			 Sefton 10 
			 South Cheshire 6 
			 South Lancashire 2 
			 St. Helens and Knowsley 8 
			 Stockport 2 
			 West Pennine 4 
			 Wigan and Bolton 4 
			 Wirral 2 
			 Bedfordshire 10 
			 Cambridgeshire 6 
			 Hertfordshire 32 
			 Norfolk 6 
			 North Essex 12 
			 South Essex 10 
			 Suffolk 4 
			 Barking and Havering 16 
			 Barnet, Enfield and Haringey 24 
			 Bexley, Bromley and Greenwich 24 
			 Brent and Harrow 16 
			 Camden and Islington 6 
			 Croydon 2 
			 Ealing, Hammersmith and Hounslow 26 
			 East London and The City 24 
			 Hillingdon 8 
			 Kensington, Chelsea and Westminster 4 
			 Kingston and Richmond 8 
			 Lambeth, Southwark and Lewisham 24 
			 Merton, Sutton and Wandsworth 18 
			 Redbridge and Waltham Forest 8 
			 Berkshire 4 
			 Buckinghamshire 12 
			 East Kent 6 
			 East Surrey 16 
			 East Sussex, Brighton and Hove 18 
			 Isle of Wight, Portsmouth and South East Hampshire 4 
			 North and Mid Hampshire 4 
			 Northamptonshire 10 
			 Oxfordshire 16 
			 Southampton and South West Hampshire 8 
			 West Kent 14 
			 West Surrey 26 
			 West Sussex 6 
			 Avon 22 
			 Cornwall and Isles of Scilly 2 
			 Dorset 6 
			 Gloucestershire 4 
			 North and East Devon 4 
			 Somerset 4 
			 South and West Devon 4 
			 Wiltshire 4 
		
	
	£40 million has been allocated to buy additional elective cases in the private sector this year. It has been targeted on those health authorities most in need of short term support.
	The funding will be used to free up NHS capacity but the exact number of cases purchased is not yet known. This will depend on the final details of contracts negotiated with the private sector. We will make the final figures available after the end of the financial year. However, the allocations by health authority are shown in the table.
	
		
			 Health authority £000 
		
		
			 Avon 2,650 
			 Barking and Havering 534 
			 Barnet, Enfield and Haringey 989 
			 Bedford 669 
			 Berkshire 235 
			 Birmingham 1,607 
			 Brent and Harrow 586 
			 Bromley, Bexley and Greenwich 577 
			 Buckinghamshire 1,150 
			 Calderdale and Kirklees 310 
			 Cambridge 460 
			 Camden and Islington 424 
			 Coventry 300 
			 Croydon 197 
			 Dudley 320 
			 Durham and Darlington 285 
			 East London and City 245 
			 Ealing, Hammersmith and Hounslow 850 
			 East Kent 1,590 
			 East Surrey 488 
			 East Sussex, Brighton and Hove 1,245 
			 Herefordshire 144 
			 Hertfordshire 600 
			 Hillingdon 282 
			 Isle of Wight, Portsmouth, South East Hampshire 816 
			 Kensington, Chelsea and Westminster 894 
			 Kingston and Richmond 207 
			 Lambeth, Southwark and Lewisham 1,010 
			 Leeds 500 
			 Leicestershire 219 
			 Lincolnshire 420 
			 Liverpool 2,040 
			 Manchester 1,958 
			 Merton, Sutton and Wandsworth 604 
			 Morecambe Bay 400 
			 Newcastle and North Tyne 500 
			 Norfolk 265 
			 North and Mid Hampshire 438 
			 North Cheshire 525 
			 North Cumbria 228 
			 North Derbyshire 150 
			 North Essex 562 
			 North Staffordshire 1,516 
			 North Yorkshire 350 
			 Northamptonshire 74 
			 Nottingham 800 
			 Oxfordshire 1,425 
			 Redbridge and Waltham Forest 520 
			 Salford and Trafford 300 
			 Sheffield 882 
			 Shropshire 42 
			 Solihull 50 
			 South and West Devon 250 
			 South Cheshire 270 
			 South Essex 573 
			 South Humber 90 
			 South Staffordshire 460 
			 Southampton and South West Hampshire 672 
			 Suffolk 164 
			 Tees 261 
			 Wakefield 300 
			 Walsall 250 
			 Warwickshire 180 
			 West Kent 372 
			 West Surrey 1,470 
			 West Sussex 579 
			 Wirral 300 
			 Worcestershire 1,200

Private Health Care

Richard Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to increase the number of NHS patients treated privately by allowing consenting patients to contribute a part of the cost; and if he will make a statement.

John Hutton: There are no plans to increase the number of national health service patients treated privately by allowing consenting patients to contribute a part of the cost of treatment.

Departmental Expenditure

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the saving to public funds in (a) 2000–01 and (b) 2001–02 is from the abolition of 14 administrative forms, referred to on page 17 of the 2001 departmental report.

John Hutton: The Department does not hold information on the savings to public funds from this measure. The 14 forms abolished were administrative forms which the Department issued in respect of applications for grants, licences, registration etc. These forms were abolished in pursuance of Government policy to reduce regulatory burdens on business, charities and voluntary organisations including reducing the burdens of form filling where this can be done without removing the necessary controls.

NHS Pensions Agency

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the cost in 2001–02 of the NHS Pensions Agency.

John Hutton: The total costs of the national health service Pensions Agency for 2001–02 are estimated to be £16,743,000.

NHS Trusts

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the performance of NHS trusts in meeting the external financing limits set by his Department.

John Hutton: The performance of national health service trusts against 2000–01 external financing limits is shown in the table.
	
		
			 2000–01 trust external financing limits Number  Percentage 
		
		
			 Total NHS trusts meeting EFL 343 96 
			 Total NHS trusts meeting EFL after £10,000 de minimus applied 350 98 
		
	
	Note:
	The data are taken from the 2000–01 NHS Trust Summarised Accounts. The data remain provisional, and are subject to continuing audit by the National Audit.

NHS Trusts

George Osborne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what performance indicators NHS trusts are required to publish regularly.

John Hutton: In the past we published a number of clinical indicators at national health service trust level. The national figures for the first full set of NHS trust performance indicators were published on 1 February 2002. The indicators for each NHS trust will be published shortly. The set of indicators will develop over time as more data become available, and will in future be published by the Commission for Health Improvement.
	In addition, NHS trusts are required to publish an annual report, which must include financial information and information on the number of complaints received. It is also recommended that the report include information on waiting times and cancelled operations.

Recruitment

Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what action the Government are taking to recruit more (a) nurses, (b) physiotherapists, (c) occupational therapists and (d) GPs in the North East; and if he will make a statement.

John Hutton: The Government's plans for modernising the national health service work force are set out in the document "Investment and reform for NHS staff—Taking forward the NHS plan" published on 15 February 2001. This details activity in hand to modernise work force planning including the establishment of work force development confederations at local level. These bring together NHS and non-NHS employers to plan the healthcare work force. They will work with health authorities (HAs) to produce an integrated work force plan which underpins the service plans set out in their Health Improvement Programme (HimP).
	The Northern Workforce Development Confederation is engaged in a number of initiatives to recruit more nurses, physiotherapists and occupational therapists in the north-east. The confederation is running four return-to- practice nursing courses and in-house returner training for some physiotherapists and occupational therapists. Study courses for nursing assistants to train to access pre-registration nursing courses are being run and two trusts are seconding nursing assistants onto nurse training.
	Individual trusts in the north-east are recruiting nurses from the Philippines and holding fast track recruitment days for all professions. Open days at hospitals are being held emphasising family friendly working and support groups. The confederation and three trusts were represented at the Evening Chronicle Jobs Event at the Telewest Arena in Newcastle on 23 and 24 November. One trust is recruiting newly qualified nurses over establishment for expansion plans.
	The confederation is also giving presentations to schools and colleges, careers fairs and recruitment days; placing posters/leaflets in various public places such as libraries, sports centres, general practitioners surgeries, village halls, and running an advertising campaign on the back of buses until the end of December for general recruitment in all careers and for return to practice advertisements.
	We are committed to boosting GP numbers and have already introduced a number of measures to encourage more doctors into primary care. These include a "Golden Hello" scheme which will give £5,000 to every GP who joins the NHS, with an extra payment of up to £5,000 if they work in an under-doctored area and a new £22 million GP training package whereby new GPs will be eligible for additional training of up to 20 days a year. We have also given a commitment to ensure trainee GPs' pay is increased in line with that of junior hospital doctors in the future and increased funding for locum cover for family doctors on maternity, paternity and adoptive leave.
	The Northern Workforce Development Confederation has allocated £12,000 to fund recruitment and retention initiatives within primary care in the North East. The flexibilities afforded by the Personal Medical Services pilots allow opportunities for further GP recruitment, particularly as employees rather than independent contractors. Sunderland, which has the highest average GP patient list sizes in England, has been particularly successful in boosting its GP numbers through this scheme.
	The measures announced by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State on 5 November to improve the quality of, and expand, GP premises, especially in under-doctored areas, are likely to act as a lever in boosting GP recruitment to hitherto difficult to recruit areas. The north- east health authorities have, in the two years to September 2001, increased GP numbers by over 90 additional GPs, representing an increase of seven per cent. in the GP work force.

Walk-in Centres

Andy Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what level of funding will be available in the NHS Plan for the future funding of walk-in centres in England.

John Hutton: NHS walk-in centres are being piloted as a new initiative to offer convenient access to primary care services. 42 centres are now open. As pilots, they are being independently evaluated, and are funded in part locally and in part by the Department. Decisions on their future development and funding will be informed by the independent evaluation and by the outcome of the current spending review.

Hospital Waiting Times

George Osborne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients were waiting (a) more than six months and (b) more than 12 months for in-patient treatment in the South Cheshire health authority in (i) March 1997 and (ii) September 1997 and in each reporting period in between.

John Hutton: The number of residents of South Cheshire health authority recorded as waiting more than six months and 12 months for in-patient and day case treatment at the 31 March, 30 June and 30 September 1997 is shown in the table.
	
		
			  Over 6 months Over 12 months 
		
		
			 March 1997 4,043 338 
			 June 1997 5,126 978 
			 September 1997 5,148 914

Hospital Waiting Times

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the 10 health authorities with the (a) highest and (b) lowest expenditure by weighted head; and if he will estimate the number of people waiting for more than six months in each of these health authority areas for (i) in-patient treatment and (ii) out-patient treatment; and if he will make a statement.

John Hutton: For the reasons set out in the notes to the table, expenditure per head cannot be reliably compared between health authorities, nor necessarily be correlated with waiting times information.
	The 10 health authorities with the highest and lowest expenditure per weighted head of population in 2000–01 are shown in the table. The numbers of people waiting for more than six months for in-patient and for out-patient treatment are shown both as total numbers waiting and also as the numbers waiting per 1,000 head of weighted population.
	
		
			   Number of patients waiting over 6 months Number of patients waiting over 26 weeks (= 6 months)  
			 Health authority Expenditure per weighted head of population (£)  For in-patient treatment For in-patient treatment per 1,000 head of weighted population For 1st out-patient appointment following GP referral For 1st out-patient appointment following GP referral per 1,000 head of weighted population 
		
		
			  10 health authorities with highest expenditure per weighted head  
			 Morecambe Bay 1,346.04 1,085 3.4 722 2.3 
			 Camden and Islington 1,067.88 1,147 2.3 821 1.6 
			 Sefton 1,040.25 1,811 6.1 779 2.6 
			 Dorset 1,023.69 47 0.1 19 0.0 
			 Kensington, Chelsea and Westminster 1,011.24 838 1.7 324 0.6 
			 Bromley 971.74 1,913 6.5 186 0.6 
			 Barnet 959.87 1,298 3.9 654 2.0 
			 East Surrey 958.66 3,009 7.9 184 0.5 
			 Sheffield 956.59 1,868 3.3 1,236 2.2 
			 Croydon 925.44 2,145 6.5 92 0.3 
			   
			  10 health authorities with lowest expenditure per weighted head 
			 Stockport 759.28 1,389 5.0 605 2.2 
			 Solihull 756.17 473 2.4 16 0.1 
			 Buckinghamshire 755.09 3,419 5.6 559 0.9 
			 Hillingdon 753.76 987 4.0 421 1.7 
			 St. Helens and Knowsley 749.06 1,782 4.7 1,140 3.0 
			 West Pennine 746.22 1,939 4.0 449 0.9 
			 North Derbyshire 744.33 1,649 4.5 221 0.6 
			 East Lancashire 740.66 2,405 4.3 613 1.1 
			 County Durham and Darlington 738.32 1,852 2.8 441 0.7 
			 Wigan and Bolton 732.65 2,638 4.3 1,601 2.6 
		
	
	Notes
	1. In many health authorities there are factors which distort the expenditure per head. These include:
	the health authority acting in a lead capacity to commission healthcare or fund training on behalf of other health bodies;
	asset revaluations in NHS Trusts being funded through health authorities; and
	some double counting of expenditure between health authorities and primary care trusts within the health authority area.
	Allocations per weighted head of population provide a much more reliable measure to identify differences between funding of health authorities.
	2. Expenditure is taken from health authority and primary care trust summarisation forms which are prepared on a resource basis and therefore differ from allocations in the year. The expenditure is the total spent by the health authority and by the primary care trusts within each health authority area. The majority of General Dental Services expenditure is not included in the health authority or primary care trust accounts and is separately accounted for by the Dental Practice Board.
	3. Health authorities and primary care trusts should account for their expenditure on a gross basis. This results in an element of double counting where one body acts as the main commissioner and is then reimbursed by other bodies. The effect of this double counting within the answer cannot be identified.
	Sources
	Health authority summarisation forms 2000–01
	Primary care trust summarisation schedules 2000–01
	Weighted population estimates 2000–01
	QFO1/QMO8R Waiting times data quarterly returns, end March 2001.

Protection of Children Act

Debra Shipley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what measures he has taken to ensure that employers of child care workers report to the police suspicions concerning a child care worker under the provisions of the Protection of Children Act 1999.

Jacqui Smith: The Protection of Children Act 1999 makes no provision for the reporting of concerns by employers to the police. The Act requires child care organisations to notify the Secretary of State when they have dismissed a person from a child care position on the grounds of misconduct (whether or not in the course of his employment) which harmed a child or placed a child at risk of harm. They are also required to notify my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State in certain other circumstances specified in the Act.

GPs

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the number of GPs due to retire over the next 10 years.

John Hutton: The Department does not collect information about retirement intentions of general practitioners. All unrestricted principals and equivalents (UPEs) have to retire as a principal by the age of 70. Around 2,200 UPEs will reach 70 by 2011.
	In addition there are a further 8,880 doctors who are currently aged between 48 and 58. We might expect a proportion of these doctors to also leave by 2011. A number of doctors continue to work in the national health service after they have claimed their NHS pension until they retire fully.
	The target increase in the NHS Plan for GPs is at least 2,000 more by 2004. The increases are based on an assessment of what is deliverable given the numbers expected to come out of training, and what is achievable through action on recruitment and retention. This assessment is set against the number of staff we expect to leave the NHS (leavers and retirements).

Procurement

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on his Department's partnering relationships with the private sector to achieve better capital procurement and value for money.

John Hutton: The Department's partnering programme was launched in "Sold on Health" in May 2000, and included proposals to pilot partnering frameworks in schemes in the west midlands and north-west. Final selection is currently under way, and we expect to appoint the successful partners in April 2002. Our programme follows best practice in the public and private sectors, and we anticipate that once partnering is fully developed it will delivery significant time savings, greater value for money, and better facilities for patients.

Equal Opportunities Fund

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the expenditure level of the Equal Opportunities Fund in (a) 2001–02, (b) 2002–03 and (c) 2003–04.

John Hutton: We plan to spend £10,000 in each of the three years 2001–02, 2002–03, 2003–04 to employ staff whose costs will be reimbursed from the Employment Opportunities Fund.

Reforming Emergency Care Allocation

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what additional allocation for 2001–02 under Reforming Emergency Care has been given to (a) Forest health care trust, (b) Redbridge hospital trust and (c) Redbridge and Waltham Forest health authority; and for what purpose they will be used.

John Hutton: holding answer 3 December 2001
	Forest health care national health service trust and Redbridge hospital NHS trust ceased to exist in April 2001. Acute services are now provided by Whipps Cross university hospital NHS trust and Barking, Havering and Redbridge NHS trust.
	My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State announced a £118 million package for Reforming Emergency Care over two years. Whipps Cross university hospital NHS trust received £78,563 for 2001–02 and £322,110 for 2002–03 for additional accident and emergency nurses and £4,100 as a contribution towards providing the infrastructure in emergency care networks and local leadership through emergency care leads for 2001–02 and £16,600 for 2002–03.
	Barking, Havering and Redbridge NHS trust received £154,203 for 2001–02 and £632,243 for 2002–03 for additional accident and emergency nurses and £4,100 as a contribution towards providing the infrastructure in emergency care networks and local leadership through emergency care leads for 2001–02 and £16,600 for 2002–03.
	This money was distributed directly to trusts with accident and emergency departments, not through health authorities.

Public Service Agreements

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  if he will make a statement on progress towards the Public Service Agreement target of a national average annual increase of 10 per cent. on whole-time equivalent GPs from 1997 to 2002;
	(2)  if he will make a statement on the Public Service Agreement target for the number of new practice nurses by 2002;
	(3)  if he will make a statement on progress towards meeting the Public Service Agreement target for the improvement of primary care premises in areas of deprivation.

John Hutton: The Public Service Agreement target on general practitioner numbers relates to a "1 per cent." annual increase not "10 per cent.". We are currently on course to achieve all of these targets.

Doctor's Incomes

Derek Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average income is for (a) a hospital consultant and (b) a GP.

John Hutton: We estimate that at August 2000, medical consultants were paid, on average, £65,000 basic salary, £72,000 total earnings, by national health service employers.
	Note:
	Doctors figures relate to medical consultants
	Source:
	Department of Health's August 2000 NHS staff earnings survey
	For 2000–01 the intended average net income for a full time general practitioner principal delivering general medical services is £60,655.

Citizens Council

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which of the Nolan principles will not be applied to the appointees to the Citizens Council.

John Hutton: The appointment of members to Citizens Council is a matter for the National Institute for Clinical Excellence, but we would expect the appointment process to be equitable, open and transparent. We understand that the creation of a pool of members will rely on a mixture of open advertisement and then selecting from the electoral register to ensue that there is a cross-section of society in the membership. We believe this process would satisfy the Nolan principles.

Nursing

Evan Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether, in those areas covered by NHS professionals, NHS trusts will continue to be allowed to contract directly with private nursing agencies for the provision of services.

John Hutton: National health service trusts are undertaking joint procurement processes in order to ensure temporary staffing is better co-ordinated and more consistent. It is believed that this will minimise local anomalies, lower administration costs, and in turn lead to better quality patient care and value for money, whatever the source of supply, private nursing agencies included.

Nursing

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what has been the (a) average length of time and (b) longest time it has taken to (i) process applications by nurses to be put on its books and (ii) pay nurses for placements by NHS Professionals for each month since its establishment.

John Hutton: Currently this information is not collected centrally. Improvements in collecting management information will be made following a review of the early implementation sites.

Nursing

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if NHS Professionals will be required to comply with the Nurse Agency National Minimum Standards and Regulations; and if NHS Professionals will be inspected by the National Care Standards Commission.

John Hutton: As NHS Professionals is a national health service employer it does not have to comply with the Nursing Agency Minimum Standards and Regulations nor will it be inspected by the National Care Standards Commission. The standards required of NHS Professionals will be those required of any other NHS employer.

Nursing

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if nurses registered with NHS Professionals but not directly employed by an NHS organisation will be covered by the nurse agency standards and regulations.

John Hutton: As NHS Professionals is a national health service employer nurses registered with it will not be covered by the Nursing Agency Minimum Standards and Regulations. However because those nurses will be working for an NHS employer and within the NHS they will be required to meet the standards expected of full time NHS nurses.

Nursing

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if (a) the Commission for Health Improvement and (b) the National Care Standards Commission will be responsible for monitoring compliance with standards for agency nursing staff supplied by a private agency but placed by NHS Professionals.

John Hutton: The Commission for Health Improvement (CHI) considers staffing and staff management issues when carrying our clinical governance reviews of national health service trusts. In a routine clinical governance review, CHI may look at how agency bank and locum staff are inducted, and what training they have.
	The National Care Standards Commission will be responsible for inspecting private nurses agencies on the basis of the national minimum standards. These standards will govern the operation of agencies and how they conduct the supply of temporary nursing staff. The standards will apply to an agency whether or not NHS Professionals uses that agency's services.

Palliative Care

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what new training is available for district and community nurses dealing with palliative care.

John Hutton: holding answer 8 January 2002
	We have made £6 million available over the next three years to support over 10,000 nurses in primary care to take part in new training in the general principles and practice of palliative care.

Palliative Care

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many district and community nurses have received new training in palliative care.

John Hutton: holding answer 8 January 2002
	The information requested is not collected centrally.
	The English National Board for Nursing, Midwifery and health Visiting records nurse post registration training information. However, their records do not differentiate between different types of nurses.
	We have funded a £2 million initiative to provide training to help nurses support people with cancer at home for as long as possible during their illness. We expect that over 10,000 nurses in primary care will take part in the training programme over the next three years.

Empty Properties

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his estimate is of the (a) annual cost and (b) total value of the empty properties owned by (i) his Department, (ii) his agencies and (iii) other public bodies for which he has had responsibility in each of the last four years.

John Hutton: The Department, its agencies and executive non-departmental public bodies have only one property that has been empty since July 2000 at an annual cost of £321,000 and a value of £3.7 million. This property is intended to be used by the national health service shortly.
	No information is available centrally on vacant properties held by NHS bodies.

Health Bodies (Composition)

George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people from the Knowsley, North and Sefton, East constituency sit on (a) local health trusts and (b) other health bodies sponsored by his Department; and if he will make a statement.

Jacqui Smith: Six people who live in the Knowsley, North and Sefton, East constituency currently serve on national health service boards. The bodies involved are given in the table.
	
		
			 NHS body Number of members 
		
		
			 Aintree Hospital Trust 1 
			 North Mersey Community NHS Trust 1 
			 St. Helens and Knowsley Community NHS Trust 2 
			 St. Helens and Knowsley Health Authority 1 
			 St. Helens and Knowsley Hospital NHS Trust 1 
			  
			 Total 6

Laura Touche

George Osborne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what action the Government proposes to take following the coroner's verdict on the death of Laura Touche at the Portland hospital, London.

Jacqui Smith: We have already taken steps to improve the regulation of private health care services. From 1 April this year, a new independent body, the National Care Standards Commission, will take over from health authorities the regulation of independent health care providers.
	For the first time, providers will have to meet national minimum standards. The guiding principles when producing these standards was that the needs of patients were paramount, and that the standards must be compatible with national health service standards where possible. The standards comprise core standards with which all independent health care providers will have to comply, including the requirement that they have in place a formal complaints policy and procedures. Complainants who are dissatisfied with a hospital's complaints system may approach the Commission direct.
	Apart from core standards, providers will be required to meet standards specific to the services they provide. For the first time, the owners and managers of private hospitals will be held accountable for the quality of care provided in their establishment.

NHS Concordat

Andy Burnham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients have been treated to date under the NHS concordat in (a) the south-east, (b) the south-west, (c) London, (d) Trent, (e) the west midlands, (f) the north-west, (g) north and Yorkshire and (h) England.

John Hutton: holding answer 29 January 2002
	Since November 2000 the Independent Healthcare Association has collected monthly data from independent health care providers about the number of national health service patients treated by them. A breakdown of the information will shortly be placed in the Library.
	According to this data, at least 80,000 procedures have been treated in the independent sector in England, paid for by the NHS. This figure includes out-patient appointments, day cases and in-patient treatment. Information for the regions requested is in the table.
	The Department has recently surveyed health authorities and trusts on the amount of activity they are purchasing for NHS patients within the private sector and will make available key results soon. The Department is also currently reviewing its information needs as far as NHS-funded activity in the private sector is concerned.
	
		
			 Region(25) Procedures(26) 
		
		
			 London 3,162 
			 North-west 18,542 
			 Northern and Yorkshire 15,172 
			 South-east 19,047 
			 South-west 6,636 
			 Trent 6,978 
			 West Midlands 7,029 
		
	
	(25) May differ slightly from NHS regions.
	(26) Procedures undertaken by the independent sector facilities in each region (may differ slightly from NHS regions) paid for by the NHS between November 2000 and December 2001 (including out-patient appointments, day cases and in-patient treatment).

Parliamentary Questions (PFI)

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many written parliamentary questions regarding private finance initiatives have been tabled since 1 January 2000; and in answer to how many of these information has not been provided on the grounds of commercial confidentiality.

John Hutton: No information has been withheld on the grounds of commercial confidentiality to all the 109 written parliamentary questions which have been tabled since 1 January 2000 relating to the private finance initiative.

Departmental Salary Costs

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of the departmental expenditure limit in 2001–02 will be accounted for by salary costs and pension contributions.

John Hutton: The total departmental expenditure limit in 2001–02 is £49.8 billion. The current estimate of the hospital and community health service paybill in 2001–02 is £22.7 billion (45 per cent. of the planned expenditure).
	The estimate of the HCHS paybill includes all salary costs—including pension contributions.

Children in Care

Evan Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children in care turned 16 in the academic years (a) 1996–97, (b) 1997–98, (c) 1998–99, (d) 1999–2000 and (e) 2000–01.

Jacqui Smith: The information in the table approximates to the number of school children in their GCSE year, who had been looked after at any time during their secondary education up to and including that year.
	
		Estimated number(27),(28) of children who were looked after at any time during their year 11 at school, or at any time during the previous four school years
		
			 Academic year Estimated number 
		
		
			 1996–97 12,100 
			 1997–98 11,300 
			 1998–99 11,100 
			 1999–2000 11,000 
			 2000–01(29),(30) 10,400 
		
	
	(27) The table excludes children who were looked after under a series of short term placements.
	(28) All figures in the above table have been rounded to the nearest 100.
	(29) All CLA data for financial year ending 31 March 2001 are provisional.
	(30) Incomplete year. Latest information on DH database relates to year ending 31 March 2001. The estimated figure relates to children who were 16 during the period 1 September 2000 to 31 August 2001, and were looked after at any time during the period 1 September 1996 to 31 March 2001.
	Source:
	CLA Episode system.

Silicone Cosmesis

Evan Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much has been allocated to each health authority for silicone cosmesis from the funding for 2001–02; and how much has been spent.

Jacqui Smith: On the 9 January 2001 the Government announced that funding totalling £4 million to provide silicone cosmesis to prosthetic limb users was to be made available over the next three years. The funding started with £0.5 million for 2001–02, £1.5 million for 2002–03 and £2 million for 2003–04. This was an addition to the baseline allocations to the 99 health authorities. Each local health authority will provide funding to individual disablement service centres (DSCs) to provide silicone cosmesis.
	The contract for purchasing silicone cosmesis covers was awarded on 1 October 2001. To support this initiative officials in my Department wrote, on 12 December 2001, to all health authorities reminding them that this funding has been provided to them in their allocations.
	The contractor is required as part of the contract to provide the NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency with quarterly contract sales figures which will include:
	total sales figure in £s;
	£s spent by each DSC; and
	what span of products are purchased. These data are currently being collected by the NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency.

Strategic Health Authorities (Board Papers)

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if members of the public will have the same right of access to the board papers of strategic health authorities as they currently do to the board papers of health authorities.

John Hutton: Yes. The provisions relating to open board meetings and access to board papers will be exactly the same for strategic health authorities as currently apply to health authorities.

Mental Health

Helen Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people were (a) admitted to hospital for formal detention and (b) informally admitted to hospital in each year since 1997.

Jacqui Smith: The Department collects and publishes information annually relating to patients detained under the Mental Health Act 1983. The most recent publication "In-patients formally detained in hospitals under the Mental Health Act 1983 and other legislation, England: 1990–1991 to 2000–2001" summarises the position at 31 March 2001.
	Table 1 of the publication shows that all formal admissions to national health service facilities, during the period 1 April 1997 to 31 March 2001 increased from 25,415 to 26,707.
	Table 7 of the publication shows that the numbers of patients whose legal status changed from informal to formal admission, during the period 1 April 1997 to 31 March, increased from 68,027 to 73,751.
	The total number of admissions to NHS hospitals for treatment for mental illness is shown in the table.
	
		
			  Mental illness 
		
		
			 1997–98 203,800 
			 1998–99 188,700 
			 1999–2000 187,600 
			 2000–01 181,500

Mental Health

Helen Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidelines were issued to health authorities and mental health trusts following the House of Lords judgments in the Bournewood case.

Jacqui Smith: The House of Lords gave its decision in the case of L v. Bournewood Community and Mental Health NHS trust on 25 June 1998. On 10 July 1998 the Department issued a circular (HSC 1999/122) informing the chief executives of national health service trusts and other interested parties of the decision of the House of Lords. It also gave "preliminary guidance" on the practical consequences of the House of Lords decision.
	Further guidance was included in the "Code of Practice: Mental Health Act 1983" published in March 1999. The code provides guidance on the admission to hospital and the treatment of patients who are mentally incapable of giving consent.

Autism

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research projects into the causes of autism have been supported by the Government since 1997.

Jacqui Smith: Details of research projects on autism can be found on the National Research Register (NRR) at www.doh.gov.uk/research.nrr.htm. The NRR includes information on research commissioned through the national and regional programmes of national health service research and development and the Department's Policy Research Programme, as well as work supported by NHS Support for Science funding that has been commissioned by the Medical Research Council (MRS) and others. The NRR shows that there are currently 58 on-going and 109 completed projects on autism.
	The MRC (which is largely funded by Government) published a detailed review of the epidemiology and causes of autism on 13 December 2001. The report, commissioned by the Department in March 2001, provides a clear, authoritative picture of what scientific research has revealed about the occurrence and causes of autism spectrum disorders. The report encourages the research community to develop high quality research proposals that address the key issues identified in the report.
	We are discussing with the MRC the implications of their report for their research programme.

Care Homes

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the cost was of (a) a grade F nursing home place and (b) a residential home place, paid for by each county social services authority in England in (i) 1997, (ii) 1999 and (iii) 2001; and what the county average was.

Jacqui Smith: The information is not available in the form requested.

Health Bodies (Budgets)

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance he has issued to NHS regional chief executives on (a) the need for health bodies to balance their budgets and (b) advice to give where overspends are anticipated.

John Hutton: The Department issued "NHS Plan Implementation Programme" which provided guidance on priorities. Within this guidance, a target of financial balance has been set which is managed in year by the Department's regional offices.
	Where health bodies require support at year-end this will be provided principally through brokerage from elsewhere in the national health service.

Primary Care Trusts (Overspending)

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he expects overspends by primary care trusts to be offset by savings by other health bodies.

John Hutton: By the end of this financial year we expect all primary care trusts to live within their agreed resource limits. Where they require support at the year-end this will be provided principally through brokerage from elsewhere in the national health service. This is normal practice in managing the end of year financial position.

Smallpox Vaccine

Robert Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance has been issued to public health professionals in the event of a large scale smallpox outbreak.

John Hutton: holding answer 5 February 2002
	The Department issued guidance to all health authorities and regional directors of Public health on the procedures to be followed in the event of a deliberate release of smallpox and other biological agents on 17 October 2001. At the same time, guidance for medical and laboratory staff was issued by the Public Health Laboratory Service on 17 October 2001. This is available on the PHLS website: http://www.phls.co.uk/advice/smallpox guidelines.pdf

Smallpox Vaccine

Robert Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to his answer of 22 November 2001, Official Report, column 410W, how many smallpox vaccine doses are held by his Department.

John Hutton: holding answer 5 February 2002
	It is not possible to expand upon the answer given on 22 November 2001, as details concerning quantities of vaccine could aid planning of a bioterrorist attack. A strategic stock of vaccine is held which could be rapidly deployed to contain an outbreak.

Smallpox Vaccine

Robert Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to his answer of 22 November 2001, Official Report, column 410W, whether Britain will have a smallpox vaccine stockpile ensuring a dose for every citizen by January 2003.

John Hutton: holding answer 5 February 2002
	It is not possible to expand upon the answer given on 22 November 2001, as details about vaccine supplies could aid planning of a bioterrorist attack. A strategic stock of smallpox vaccine is already held which could be deployed to contain an outbreak, and this is being kept under review together with the United Kingdom's future requirements for smallpox vaccine.

Smallpox Vaccine

Robert Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the proportion of the population which has some protective immunity to smallpox.

John Hutton: holding answer 5 February 2002
	Routine vaccination for smallpox stopped in the United Kingdom and in all countries by 1980 when eradication was declared by the Word Health Organisation. We now have a population which either has never been vaccinated or who were vaccinated 20 or more years ago and who have waning immunity.
	A Departmental funded study by the Centre for Applied Microbiology and Research has been looking at how best to estimate the protective immunity within the UK population, as part of a wider study on microbial risk assessment. Recent estimates put the level of immunity at about 18 per cent., though it must be stressed that this is only a crude estimate.

Smallpox Vaccine

Robert Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to his answer of 22 November 2001, Official Report, column 410W, how many smallpox vaccine doses would be required to contain a smallpox outbreak in the UK.

John Hutton: holding answer 5 February 2002
	The number of smallpox vaccine doses depend on a number of factors including scale of release, number, time to disease recognition, location and site. Such factors and the need to consider different scenarios are integral to the Department's contingency planning.
	The use of smallpox vaccine would depend upon the circumstances of the outbreak of the disease and whether or not it could be confined to a particular location.

Parliamentary Questions

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he will answer the question tabled by the hon. Member for Sutton and Cheam on 6 November 2001, ref. 13108, concerning beta interferon.

Hazel Blears: I replied to the hon. Member on 31 January 2002, Official Report, column 560W.

Social Workers

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many whole-time equivalent social work staff there were on local authority establishments in each of the last 10 years; and how many of these posts were left unfilled in each year.

Jacqui Smith: For the numbers of whole-time equivalent social work staff, I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for Caernarfon (Hywel Williams) on 18 January 2002, Official Report, column 530W. Information on the number of unfilled social work staff posts is not held centrally.

Social Workers

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment her Department has made of the trends in the use made by social services departments of agency staff in each of the last four years.

Jacqui Smith: Information on the use of agency staff by local authority social services departments is not held centrally.

Health Authority Budgets (London)

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the latest forecast figures are for (a) underspending or overspending for the present financial year, (b) recurring funding pressures which impact on the 2002–03 planning round and (c) deficits in the local health economy in each health authority in London submitted to the London regional office.

John Hutton: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave on 4 February 2002, Official Report, column 793W.

National Care Standards Commission

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many pharmacists the National Care Standards Commission employs; and when the full complement of pharmacists will be in post.

Jacqui Smith: The National Care Standards Commission has a complement of 66 pharmacist inspectors and one national pharmacist professional adviser. None are currently employed by the NCSC, as the responsibility for regulation will not be passed until 1 April 200. The national post is due to be advertised in mid-February. The full complement of pharmacist inspectors is unlikely to be in post for some time, as there are insufficient pharmacist inspectors eligible to transfer to the NCSC from 1 April 2002. Pharmacy inspection services will therefore be obtained by various local arrangements to fulfil the complement from 1 April.

National Care Standards Commission

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what new outcome measures for residents in care homes will be collected by the National Care Standards Commission.

Jacqui Smith: The National Minimum Standards for care homes focus on achievable outcomes for service users constructed around separate topics, for example, choice of home, health and personal care, daily life and social activities and environment. The standards will form the basis for judgments made by the National Care Standards Commission concerning registration. The standards are not only qualitative, providing a tool for judging the quality of life of service users, but also measurable.

Strokes

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how he will ensure that every hospital that cares for older people with strokes will have established clinical audit systems by April 2003, as required by the National Framework for Older People.

Jacqui Smith: The Department's Priorities and Planning Framework 2002–03, issued 6 December 2001 sets the achievement of the milestones of the National Service Framework (NSF) for Older People within one of the three major priorities for local action. The initial milestones set for the improvements in stroke care, provide that:
	by April 2002 every general hospital which cares for people with stroke will have plans to introduce a specialised stroke service as described in the stroke service model from 2004;
	by April 2003 every hospital which cares for older people with stroke will have established clinical audit systems to ensure delivery of the Royal College of Physicians clinical guidelines for stroke care.
	The achievement of each of the milestones will be monitored.
	The NSF for Older People recommended that the clinical audit methodology developed by the Royal College of Physicians be used as the basis for agreeing local priorities for action in ensuring the establishment of integrated stroke services and for the continued auditing of service improvement.

Strokes

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what resources will be made available to support the continuation of the National Sentinel Audit for Stroke.

Jacqui Smith: The Department provided £233,000 for the initial development of the stroke audit. Responsibility and funding for the National Sentinel Audits was transferred from the Department to the National Institute for Clinical Excellence in December 1999. Following a review last year by NICE of their completed audits topics, the Department is considering a proposal to commission further work on the stroke audit.

Strokes

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he will take to further (a) his Department's policy research and (b) the NHS Research and Development Programme to deal with strokes; and if he will make a statement.

Jacqui Smith: We have set standards to improve the provision of integrated stroke services in the National Service Framework for Older People, and research will underpin this strategy. The Department continues to support stroke research through the national health service health technology assessment programme (HTA), the Department's policy research programme and other NHS research and development programmes. In addition to the new research referred to in the reply given on 1 February 2002, Official Report, column 624W, the HTA programme has recently advertised further calls for proposals for primary research in the treatment of high blood pressure immediately after stroke.
	The NHS research and development programmes use a range of methods to identify, prioritise and commission work in all areas including stroke. Further details can be found on the website www.doh.gov.uk/research.

Correspondence

David Winnick: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  when he will reply to the letter of 28 November 2001 from the hon. Member for Walsall, North, regarding a constituent, ref: P0001146;
	(2)  pursuant to the interim reply of 15 January (ref: PQ 4078/2001/2002), when the hon. Member for Walsall, North will receive a substantive reply to his letter of 28 November 2001 (ref: P0001146 (27311)).

John Hutton: holding answers 15 January and 29 January 2002
	A reply was sent on 30 January 2002.